Inside Sea-Tac’s efforts to clean up PFAS firefighting foams

By Isabella Breda and Manuel Villa | The Seattle Times | July 2, 2024

Read the full article by Isabella Breda and Manuel Villa (The Seattle Times)

“Taxiing jet engines groaned on the tarmac, their fumes filling the Port of Seattle’s firetruck bays on an early summer day here. Snaking hoses connected tanks and filters in a complex cleanup operation.

Over six days, the system flushed a toxic substance from a firetruck as the department became one of the first in the nation to begin to remove firefighting foam concentrates laced with ‘forever chemicals.’

For decades, per- and polyfluoroalkyl chemicals, or PFAS, have been used in foams to put out the highest-intensity petroleum-fueled fires — especially important in saving lives amid catastrophe at airports, military bases and fossil fuel refineries."

This content provided by the PFAS Project.

Location:

• North AmericaUSWashington

Topics:

• ChemicalsPFAS
• ChemicalsPolymer
• ProductsFirefighting foam
• SourcesAirports
• SourcesFire departments
• Environment
• Wildlife
• Affected community
• Health
• Measurement Techniques
• Monitoring Data
• PFAS Uses