NEW MEXICO (KRQE) – The U.S. House passed legislation directing the federal government to clean up groundwater contamination. Cannon and Holloman Air Force bases are among those that have used firefighting foam containing PFAS which then contaminated waters.
Wednesday on the House floor, Congresswoman Teresa Leger Fernandez (D-New Mexico) talked about Highland Dairy near Cannon. She says the groundwater at Highland had PFAS levels hundreds of times higher than EPA limits. This prevented the owner from selling his milk or cattle.
So, Leger Fernandez proposed an amendment to the PFAS legislation to include the agriculture industry. “We cannot allow PFAS to work itself into our food system. My amendment requires the EPA to consider the risk PFAS poses to water used for agricultural purposes like that, at Highland. The EPA’s work must be inclusive of farmers, rural America and the food we eat,” Rep. Leger Fernandez said.
The bipartisan legislation passed by the house Wednesday includes Leger Fernandez amendment–it also designates the chemicals as hazardous and directs the EPA to clean up contamination.
