DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENT, GREAT LAKES & ENERGY: Michigan PFAS Action Response Team awards $2.5 million in grants for municipal airport PFAS testing

By Press release submission

Jul 8, 2020

Department of Environment, Great Lakes & Energy issued the following announcement on July 1.

The Michigan PFAS Action Response Team (MPART) today announced it has awarded approximately $2.5 million in grant funding to municipal airport operators to support monitoring and testing for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination. Grants were awarded to the following airports:

Detroit Metropolitan Airport - $250,000
Willow Run Airport - $250,000
Delta County Airport - $235,200
Bishop International Airport Authority - $250,000
Gerald R. Ford International Airport - $249,904
Ford/Dickinson County Airport - $250,000
Manistee Blacker Airport - $237,300
Pellston Regional Airport - $250,000
Oakland County International Airport - $100,000
MBS International Airport - $154,000
Cherry Capitol Airport - $249,981

The grant recipients were current or former Part 139 commercial service airports in Michigan that have used or are suspected to have used Class B Aqueous Film Forming Foam (AFFF) to comply with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) requirements. Federal, state and military aviation facilities were not eligible for the grant funding, although co-located municipal airport operations could apply.

Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) is overseeing the grant program and Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE) is providing technical assistance

There remains approximately $1.5 million in MPART grant funding available to eligible airports. Priority will be given to airports that demonstrate:

They did not apply during the initial RFP application period.
Known or suspected impacts to sensitive receptors such as residential wells.
Known or suspected impacts to lakes, streams and wetlands, especially waterbodies used for drinking water.
Releases known to be above Michigan’s groundwater cleanup criteria.
Detailed documentation of historic uses of AFFF.
Hydrogeological risk factors such as groundwater flow direction.
Continued overall compliance with environmental regulations.

A request for proposals (RFP) detailing the grant program can be found at Michigan.gov/AERO

For additional questions about the application process or general grant process questions, contact Steve Houtteman, MDOT Aeronautics, at HouttemanS@michigan.gov.

PFAS are a large group of man-made chemicals that have been used in many consumer and industrial products, such as non-stick cookware, waterproof fabrics and firefighting foam.

To stay up to date on EGLE news, go to Michigan.gov/MIEnvironment and follow us on Twitter at @MichiganEGLE.

Original source can be found here.