Air Force Sent Wastewater into Sewers up to 3 Times a Year
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — The Air Force says a base near Colorado Springs sent water laced with toxic firefighting foam into the city’s sewer system as often as three times a year.
Air Force officials tell The Gazette that Peterson Air Force Base stopped sending firefighting foam wastewater into sewers last year, but criminal investigators are looking into the recent discharge of 150,000 gallons of chemical-laden water from the base.
The foam is suspected of contaminating the Widefield Aquifer, rendering well water for customers in Security, Widefield and Fountain unsafe to drink.
The Air Force contends its earlier discharges of contaminated wastewater were in accordance with the city’s utilities guidelines, which Colorado Springs Utilities disputes.
The foam contains perfluorinated compounds, or PFCs, which have been linked to prostate, kidney and testicular cancer.
Related News
From Archive
- Ohio trench collapse kills one worker, injures two during pipe installation
- California invests $590 million to boost water reliability, upgrade sewer systems statewide
- Dominion proposes 186-mile underground HVDC power line across Virginia
- Inside Sempra’s 72-mile pipeline with 18 major trenchless crossings
- Nueces River Authority plans 178-mile pipeline, desalination project for South Texas
- Glenfarne Alaska LNG targets late-2026 construction start for 807-mile pipeline project
- Massive water line failure leaves majority of Waterbury without service
- Infrastructure failure releases 100,000 gallons of wastewater in Houston; repairs ongoing
- Construction jobs stumble into 2026 after weak year
- Worm-like robot burrows underground to cut power line installation costs
Comments