U.S. Geological Survey scientists Stuart Norton, Erik Storms and Natalia Montero are installing a passive flow meter at Cannon Air Force Base to measure PFAS contamination in June 2020. (Courtesy Erin Gray / USGS)
Copyright © 2021
The federal government this week expanded financial compensation for dairy farmers affected by a group of chemicals called PFAS.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s new ruling could help New Mexico producers like Art Schaap, whose dairy farm is southeast of Cannon Air Force Base.
Thousands of Schaap cows were contaminated with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) after drinking groundwater that had migrated from the base.
“Adopting this rule is a big step towards getting my life back to normal,” said Schaap.
USDA pays producers like Schaap who have had to take milk off the market due to chemical contamination.
The agency said it would extend monthly payments beyond the original 18-month limit due to the “advancing” science on PFAS.
“Affected cows can probably not be marketed for a long time,” says the new rule.
Farmers can also receive money to dispose of the contaminated animals.
PFAS toxins have been linked to cancer and birth defects.
Like many military sites, Cannon used the chemicals in the extinguishing foam for training exercises.
PFAS in water at Schaap’s Highland Dairy has been tested to values that are more than 200 times the lifelong health recommendation of the environmental protection agency.
Beverly Idsinga, executive director of Dairy Producers of New Mexico, said extended payments are a step to mitigate the “tragic” harm of PFAS chemicals. But she said more had to be done to protect other producers.
“While the impact on dairy farms has been limited, the emotional and financial damage to (Highland Dairy) is significant,” Idsinga said.
Meanwhile, Air Force officials and federal scientists are studying how best to remove the chemicals from water and soil.
Key to this effort is figuring out how PFAS moves through groundwater, said Stuart Norton, a hydrologist with the US Geological Survey.
The USGS team recently surveyed nearly 20 drill holes on the base. A laboratory analyzes the results.
“Our goal is to map the surface of the groundwater and assess changes in water levels over time,” said Norton.
A $ 16.6 million pilot project of wells and a PFAS filtration system on the southeast corner of the base could become operational in April 2023.
For farmers like Schaap, the federal rule change is a welcome compensation for lost income. But the long-term cleanup is yet to come.
“I look forward to leaving this unfortunate chapter behind me and my family,” he said.
Theresa Davis is a member of the Report for America Corps, a water and environmental researcher for the .
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