A member of Congress is pushing back on a federal plan he says would roll back Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) clean-up at Stewart Air National Guard Base.
Rep. Pat Ryan, a Democrat who represents New York’s 18th Congressional District, says the Department of Defense is looking to reduce statutory reporting requirements for PFAS at military installations.
Ryan says he sent a letter to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, criticizing provisions the department wants in the latest National Defense Authorization Act.
“Every American – especially our kids – deserves to have clean drinking water. For years we’ve been fighting hard to ensure clean, safe drinking water is available in every Hudson Valley community, including those around Stewart Air National Guard Base. But now, inexplicably, Hegseth’s DoD is doing the opposite, blowing up decades of bipartisan progress,” Ryan said in a statement.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention previously said firefighting foam used at Stewart National Guard Base by the DOD led to contamination of Newburgh’s former water supply.
In 2022, the CDC published a study of 59 Newburgh residents, finding average blood levels of a PFAS chemical at three times the national average.
A DOD spokesperson tells Spectrum News 1 the agency needs at least two weeks to respond to PFAS-related inquiries and will respond directly to Ryan.