The environmental group Wild Virginia has been pressing the state to check PFAS levels before allowing storm water into Virginia’s streams and rivers.Spokesman David Sligh says the latest case involves Fort Belvoir in Northern Virginia.
“There was a big study done for the army on their property, and to their credit they found out that there was a real problem with PFAS there, so we raised the issue to DEQ and said, ‘You’ve got to do something about it. You’ve got to acknowledge and control it.’
The state refused, so this week Wild Virginia and the Potomac River Keeper Network sued, and Sligh hopes a favorable ruling will lead to greater control of PFAS statewide.
“If we get this permit correct, it should and it must carry over to all the permits where this is a threat,” Sligh contends.
Water discharged from Fort Belvoir flows into the Potomac River and on to the Chesapeake Bay. Sligh says marine life could be at risk, along with people who eat seafood from the Bay.