EPA Orders Air Force, AZ National Guard to address PFAS contamination at Tucson Superfund Site

By Katya Mendoza | azpm | June 24, 2024

Read the full article by Katya Mendoza (azpm)

"In May, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a Safe Drinking Water Act emergency order to the U.S. Air Force (USAF) and Arizona Air National Guard (AANG) regarding the Tucson International Airport Superfund Site (TIAA).

The administrative order requires the respondents to take action to “abate the threat to health presented by PFAS”, per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances, in the aquifer that includes the Tucson Area Remediation Project (TARP) water well field.

The EPA can take necessary actions, “when a contaminant is present in or is likely to enter a public water system or an underground source of drinking water,” the order states, “which may present an imminent and substantial endangerment to the health of persons, and appropriate state and local authorities have not acted to protect the health of persons.”