Military: No secrecy about contaminated water
By JEFFREY SIMPSON Staff Reporter Mon. Apr 19 - 4:53 AM
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The Canadian military says it has been upfront with information about its contaminated water supply at 14 Wing Greenwood.
"There’s no secrecy involved whatsoever," base spokesman Capt. Scott Spurr said Sunday in an interview.
"We have been very open and transparent with all of our personnel and everybody who’s involved with the water that we’ve had here."
Spurr was responding to comments made by Al Belliveau, chairman of the Greenwood Village Commission, who has been critical of the base over its handling of its contaminated wells. Water-quality tests have uncovered high levels of perfluorooctane sulfonate, a man-made chemical used as an additive in firefighting foams and in some water-repellent clothing and fabrics.
The military issued a news release last month advising the 1,300 Forces personnel, family members and single people living in quarters to avoid drinking tap water.
"Everybody’s been informed," Spurr said. "We’ve sent out letters to all of our personnel. We’ve had town halls to let them know what’s going on. And right now, we’re just waiting to hear back from the municipality in terms of being able to hook up to their municipal drinking water."
He wouldn’t specify how many wells are affected on the base due to security concerns.
The chemical was first detected in the water on Jan. 29, but the military waited for further testing to confirm there was a problem before warning residents.
"We’ve had no reports of anybody being sick here at all," Spurr said.
The military is trying to determine the extent of the problem in the base’s groundwater but expects that will take awhile, he said.
"It is fairly common in the environment, so we’re not exactly sure where it’s come from. So we’re doing more testing."
Belliveau said the base has been connected to Greenwood’s water supply, so people living there could be soon drinking from their faucets again.
"It’s all hooked up and ready to go."
No traces of the chemicals have been detected outside of the base, he said.
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By JEFFREY SIMPSON Staff Reporter Mon. Apr 19 - 4:53 AM
Article Link
The Canadian military says it has been upfront with information about its contaminated water supply at 14 Wing Greenwood.
"There’s no secrecy involved whatsoever," base spokesman Capt. Scott Spurr said Sunday in an interview.
"We have been very open and transparent with all of our personnel and everybody who’s involved with the water that we’ve had here."
Spurr was responding to comments made by Al Belliveau, chairman of the Greenwood Village Commission, who has been critical of the base over its handling of its contaminated wells. Water-quality tests have uncovered high levels of perfluorooctane sulfonate, a man-made chemical used as an additive in firefighting foams and in some water-repellent clothing and fabrics.
The military issued a news release last month advising the 1,300 Forces personnel, family members and single people living in quarters to avoid drinking tap water.
"Everybody’s been informed," Spurr said. "We’ve sent out letters to all of our personnel. We’ve had town halls to let them know what’s going on. And right now, we’re just waiting to hear back from the municipality in terms of being able to hook up to their municipal drinking water."
He wouldn’t specify how many wells are affected on the base due to security concerns.
The chemical was first detected in the water on Jan. 29, but the military waited for further testing to confirm there was a problem before warning residents.
"We’ve had no reports of anybody being sick here at all," Spurr said.
The military is trying to determine the extent of the problem in the base’s groundwater but expects that will take awhile, he said.
"It is fairly common in the environment, so we’re not exactly sure where it’s come from. So we’re doing more testing."
Belliveau said the base has been connected to Greenwood’s water supply, so people living there could be soon drinking from their faucets again.
"It’s all hooked up and ready to go."
No traces of the chemicals have been detected outside of the base, he said.
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