Jul. 29—In 2021, the United States Air Force awarded a $16.6 million contract to AECOM and Brice Environmental for a pilot study that would install a small-scale water treatment system at the southeast corner of Cannon Air Force Base. The purpose is to clean water contaminated with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).
On July 11 this year, contractors broke ground on construction for the pilot study, and some people — including Curry County Commissioner Seth Martin — are concerned.
Martin said the water contamination was disclosed about five years ago.
"What they're doing now is a pilot study ... I've been involved with it because I'm a county commissioner, and that's actually my district where this is," he said of the pilot study.
Martin said the pilot study aims to determine if the treatment plant is suitable for the clean-up.
"But what the issue is with the ... pilot program is that they want to pump the water up, filter it and reinject it into our aquifer. To me, that is risky, because you have that extra element of another contamination anytime you bring the water to the surface," Martin said.
According to Christipher Gierke, a biological scientist with the U.S. Air Force and a project manager for the pilot study at Cannon, the water planned for reinjection from the pilot study has been tested and studied to determine the best filtration system to remove PFAS without impacting the receiving aquifer water quality. That's what Gierke wrote in an email to Curry County commissioners.
But Martin said the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) classifies the treated water as "greywater," which Cannon will not use itself.
"But they're willing to reinject it. And they'll tell you, you know, it's cleaner than what they're pumping out and all this. That's not the issue. It's the issue that once it comes to the top and reinjected, you don't know what you're putting back in 100%," Martin said.
Gierke said in the email that greywater is a reference that designates water that has already been used domestically, commercially, and industrially. This term also applies to leftover, untreated water generated from bathtubs and bathroom sinks in domestic households and is generally acceptable for irrigation purposes.
"The design team evaluated over 25 different groundwater (substances) and water quality parameters to develop a treatment system that will effectively remove PFAS contamination," Gierke wrote.
"The treatment system also includes a groundwater disinfection system to address bacterial contamination (if any). Additional monitoring wells will be installed (on and off-base) and frequent sampling conducted to ensure no adverse effect to the aquifer resulting from pilot study efforts."
"Reinjection was selected for multiple reasons, but the main being it provided a net-zero effect to the aquifer level."
Gierke said in an interview Thursday that construction for the pilot study will take around 12 months.
"Hopefully, they can make it go quicker, but 12 months is looking like what it would be. And then, once the system's in place, then they'll do quite a few tests before they actually inject just to verify that everything is working properly. And then once the system is fully up and running, we'll continue to do tests and verify that everything is operating properly," Gierke said.
Seth Martin is also a member of the Clovis Water Policy Advisory Board. In a recent meeting, he brought up the issue of reinjecting greywater into the aquifer, which he said he brings up at every meeting.
"And at that time, another member of the board spoke up, and he said, well, this is very similar to what happened in Flint, Mich.," Martin said.
"The intent was good, but the outcome was they ruined the water in that community. And I'm not saying that's what could happen here. But anytime that variable is there, you have a chance of contaminating the aquifer. And that's our only source of clean water for this area."
But Gierke said project participants are doing everything possible to ensure the pilot study and the clean-up plan will not negatively impact the aquifer.
"Because one of our main concerns is to not have any adverse effects to the aquifer. And the other reason for the reinjection is to have a net zero effect because it's well-known that the aquifer is declining and drying up. And based on some of the studies that USGS has done, that southeastern area, located near the base and on the base is projected within the next 15 to 17 years to not have any more water. And so that's why the reinjection is so important to be able to continue to provide that water and not take it out of the aquifer, but treat it and then put it back in there," Gierke said
Gierke said the Air Force is coordinating with the state for permission to reinject the aquifer.
Gierke said the clean-up plan falls under the federal Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), which provides a federal "Superfund" to clean up uncontrolled or abandoned hazardous-waste sites as well as accidents, spills, and other emergency releases of pollutants and contaminants into the environment, according to the EPA's website.
"Because we're under CERCLA, we have an exemption that we're not required to get a permit. But we're still required to meet, and the proper term is 'substantive requirements' of any permits. In most situations, a person would have to get a permit from the state, but because of the CERCLA exemption, we can't. And because of that, we're not going to have a permit. But we're still following all the permit requirements," Gierke said.
Gierke said the Air Force will verify and test that the water meets the requirements for water quality once the construction is complete to ensure the system is operating how it is supposed to, and then they will start to inject.
Martin said he has been in contact with Art Schaap, whose Highland Dairy near the southeast corner of Cannon was the main property impacted by the water contamination that officials have said originated at Cannon.
The water used to operate Schaap's dairy was poisoned, resulting in the loss of 8,000 cattle and spoiled milk that was unsalable, causing Schaap to go out of business.
Gayla Brumfield, former mayor of Clovis and former chair of the Eastern New Mexico Water Utility Authority, has been working closely with Schaap to devise another plan to clean the contaminated water on Schaap's land.
Brumfield said some people object to reinjecting the aquifer with greywater and that she is helping Schaap develop a clean-up plan they hope to present to the DOD as another option.
Brumfield said she needs to learn more about the pilot study to form an opinion, but she feels strongly that her and Schaap's plan is a viable solution.
Brumfield said their plan is a great project to consider.
Brumfield said a study will be conducted using money from President Biden's bipartisan infrastructure bill, which has set aside some cash for emerging contaminants, Brumfield said New Mexico got about $63 million of that money.
"So we heard about (the bill), Art came to me to hire me to help him on a consulting thing, because I've been so involved with the water for so long. So we started digging around, and we found this money," she said.
The plan is for EPCOR, the company that oversees all of Clovis' water, to buy all of Schaap's water even if it is contaminated. Brumfield said that EPCOR plans to clean the water and bring it into its system, which would go into Clovis' water supply.
She said she and Schaap are asking for $3 million out of the $63 million set aside for emerging contaminants to fund the study for EPCOR's plan. That money could be allocated in October.
Brumfield estimates the study to be completed by this time next year, and if the survey goes well and the plan is approved, construction could start in about two years.
Brumfield said EPCOR estimates a cost of around $30 million to install the infrastructure and the water filter to get the water into EPCOR's system, which Brumfield hopes could also be funded by the infrastructure bill.
"But really, we need the study before we can really do anything," Brumfield said, "Because if the study comes back and says, 'It's just too bad, we can't do anything about it,' then we just go on down the road. And hopefully, the DOD can figure out something," she said.
Gierke said he doesn't take the role he plays in this project lightly.
"We love what we do out here. We're very proud of what we do for the community. And we're trying to, you know, make the right decisions. Do what's best, both for the environment and the community. I am a member of the community, I live here in Clovis, so I take my responsibilities very, very to heart," he said.
