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A regional water quality control agency recently announced that it detected PFAS levels at the Livermore-Pleasanton Fire Department’s training center that warrants further investigation, according to the Tri-Valley fire department.
The discovery is part of a larger investigation from the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board where it is determining whether fire stations have discharged PFAS chemicals — also known as forever chemicals — into the surface or groundwater.
According to a Monday press release from LPFD, the department is cooperating with the regional water board as it continues to investigate LPFD and other fire department facilities across the Bay Area.
“The first phase of investigations were completed at the LPFD Fire Training Center in Pleasanton and Fire Station 10 in Livermore,” the LPFD press release states.
According to past Zone 7 Water Agency presentations, firefighters have been known to use PFAS chemicals in the past. One presentation states that the profile of PFAS chemicals in the Tri-Valley is consistent with PFAS found in aqueous film-forming foam — a type of foam used to fight fires.
“PFAS are known to have been used in the manufacturing of Aqueous Film Forming Foam (AFFF), which was used nationwide as a fire-fighting foam at fire training facilities, airports, and military bases,” the LPFD press release states. “The use of PFAS in firefighting foams has since been discontinued.”
Zone 7 General Manager Valerie Pryor told the Weekly that while she hasn’t seen any reports regarding the findings at the LPFD fire station, she agreed it “may be a significant source of PFAS in the groundwater basin”.
In a separate presentation to the Water Resources Committee on Nov. 2, 2020 — titled PFAS Potential Source Investigation — the LPFD training center was circled as a potential source of PFAS in the Tr-Valley.
However, Pryor said that isn’t the only source.
Other potential sources noted in the 2020 presentation included the fire department’s Station 10 and the Las Positas College Regional Firefighter Academy, as well as non-fire department related sources such as land disposal sites, military facilities and airports.
According to Monday’s press release from LPFD, the results from the recent investigation “indicate that Fire Station 10 is not a significant source of PFAS”.
Pryor said PFAS chemicals can be found in many consumer products and contamination can come from many sources that are both easy and difficult to detect, which means eliminating those sources will be very difficult until “all consumer products are free of PFAS compounds”.
She added that the news from the LPFD training center does not change the water agency’s management strategy for the forever chemicals, which includes monitoring, blending and treating water; managing PFAS plumes; and diversifying groundwater sources.
“Zone 7 has two PFAS treatment facilities online that are cleaning up some of the PFAS contamination and providing PFAS-clean water to our customers,” Pryor said.
The fire department also stated that it is taking the matter seriously and it is working to determine the next steps following the findings of the investigation.
“LPFD is committed to working with all appropriate environmental and regulatory agencies to identify and implement solutions,” the fire department said. “Ensuring the safety of residents and protecting the environment remain LPFD’s top priorities. The department is dedicated to transparency and collaboration as it navigates this process.”
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