The US Air Force is refusing to reimburse Mashpee Water District taxpayers for treatment of two wells with levels of contamination from Joint Base Cape Cod that exceed Massachusetts drinking water standards.
The water district sent a demand letter to the Air Force in May after voters approved an estimated $8.5 million filtration system to remove PFAS contaminants from drinking water supplies on Turner Road.
PFAS, also known as “forever chemicals” because they never fully degrade, are a class of manmade chemicals that have been linked to low infant birth weights, suppression of the immune system and cancer.
The use of firefighting foams at Joint Base Cape Cod more than two decades ago is the known source of several plumes of PFAS contamination that have infiltrated numerous wells on the Upper Cape, including the two Turner Road wells. Read more…
