Community Presentation - Department of Defence · Community Presentation PFAS Investigation &...

Community PresentationPFAS Investigation & Management Program

RAAF Base Townsville, QueenslandDetailed Site Investigation

May 2018

We would like to respectfully acknowledge the Bindalpeople and the Wulgurukaba people, the traditional custodians of the land on which this meeting takes place, and also pay respect to Elders both past and present.We would also like to pay our respects to the Indigenous men and women who have contributed to the defence of Australia in times of peace and war.

Acknowledgment of Country

PFAS Investigation and Management Program

• Information about PFAS• Historical use of legacy fire fighting foams• About Defence’s PFAS Investigation and Management

Program• Health guidance• Update on the RAAF Townsville detailed environmental

investigation• Where to find more information• Questions

Overview


What are Per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)?


• Widely used around the world to make products that resist heat, stains, grease and water.

• Used in legacy firefighting foam to extinguish liquid fuel fires by both civilian and military authorities.

• PFAS of concern: Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS)Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA)Perfluorohexane sulfonate (PFHxS)

• Most people in developed countries are likely to have levels of PFAS their blood.

About the Defence Investigation and Management Program


• Defence is currently conducting detailed environmental investigations at 23 Defence properties around Australia.

• Defence National PFAS Investigation and Management Program was established in late 2015 to:

identify the nature and extent of PFAS on and around Defence properties.

research and implement remediation and management activities to reduce the impact of PFAS contamination.

Health Guidance• The Environmental Health Standing Committee (enHealth) has issued

Guidance Statements on PFAS.

• Defence relies on the enHealth Guidance Statements.

• The enHealth Guidance Statement on PFAS reiterates that:

“there is currently no consistent evidence that exposure to PFOS and PFOA causes adverse human health effects. Because these chemicals persist in humans and the environment, enHealthrecommends that human exposure to these chemicals is minimised as a precaution.”


Health Based Guidance Values for Site Investigations in Australia

Toxicity reference valuePFOS/PFHxS PFOA

ng µg ng µg

Tolerable daily intake (ng or µg /kg bw/day)

20 0.02 160 0.16

Drinking water quality value(ng or µg /L)

70 0.07 560 0.56

Recreational water quality value (ng or µg /L) 700 0.7 5,600 5.6

Note: bw = body weight, ng = nanograms, µg = micrograms (1 µg = 1,000 ng)


What will the detailed environmental investigation involve?


Defence has engaged a lead environmental consultant, WSP Australia, to undertake the detailed environmental investigation at RAAF Base Townsville.

A separate consultant, Coffey, has been engaged as the technical advisor to conduct an independent technical peer-review of the environmental investigation.

The detailed environmental investigation will be undertaken in accordance with the National Environment Protection (Assessment of Site Contamination) Measure 1999 (NEPM).

There are three main stages to the investigation:

STAGE 1:Preliminary Site

Investigation

STAGE 2:Detailed Site Investigation

STAGE 3:Human Health & Ecological Risk Assessments

PFAS Management

Area Plan

Detailed Environmental Investigation UpdateIn February 2018, PFAS National Environmental Management Plan (NEMP) was publicly released. The DSI Report has been updated to meet the objectives of NEMP.

Additional wet season investigations were conducted in April 2018 and these sampling activities will be presented in a DSI Addendum Report.

A timeline of the investigation is presented below.


Aim: to understand the linkages between PFAS source areas, the way PFAS moves through the environment, and the people, plants and animals potentially exposed. This information has been used to prioritise works for the Detailed Site Investigation.

Stage 1: Preliminary Site Investigation (PSI)


• Site history assessment– Site interviews, inspections and stakeholder information.

• Development of Conceptual Site Model to identify contamination:– where and when legacy firefighting foam was used (sources);– how PFAS move in the environment (pathways); and– people, animals and environments that may be exposed to PFAS

(receptors).

• Initiation of the Water Use Survey within the Investigation Area to refine assumptions for the Human Health Risk Assessment (HHRA).

Aim: to conduct comprehensive on and off-base sampling to further assess the nature and extent of PFAS on and in the vicinity of the base.

Stage 2: Detailed Site Investigation (DSI)


• Soil Investigation– Soil sampling– Sediment sampling

• Surface Water Investigation– Surface water sampling

• Groundwater Investigation– Install additional groundwater monitoring bores where required– Groundwater sampling

• Reporting on the works– Report consistent with the NEPM and NEMP. The PSI

information was presented in the DSI Report.

DSI Sample DataSample Type Samples

AnalysedOn-Site

SamplesAnalysedOff-Site

Total samples analysed

Soil 149 48

Sediment 16 33

Surface Water 11 33

Groundwater 74 96

Total samples 250 210


Outcomes of the DSI - Water Use Survey


Distributed to 2,500 households and businesses within the Investigation Area:

• 164 responses received• 28 unregistered groundwater bores:

• 22 were operable • 18 of these were actively used

for irrigation of lawns and gardens.

• Bores located in Garbutt, Belgian Gardens, Rowes Bay, West End and Pallarenda.

Outcomes of the DSI - Soil Results


• PFAS was not detected off-Base in soil in excess of the human-health or ecological guidance values

• PFAS was detected in Garbutt and in the Townsville Town Common.

• Two exceedances of the commercial / industrial guidance values were reported on-Base within the former Fire Training Ground (near 38SQN).

Outcomes of the DSI - Groundwater Results


• PFAS was detected off-Base in groundwater in excess of the drinking water guidance in the Townsville Town Common, Rowes Bay, Belgian Gardens, Garbutt and Bohle.

• PFAS in groundwater at a distance from the Base are considered more likely to be a result of surface water PFAS transport with subsequent infiltration of PFAS impacted water into the underlying aquifer.

Outcomes of the DSI - Surface Water & Sediment Results


• PFAS was detected in surface water and sediment on- and off-Base at concentrations in exceedance of the nominated guidelines

• Indicates that PFAS is being transported by surface water and sediment from the Base into the Town Common, Louisa Creek, Three Mile Creek and Mundy Creek catchments.

Outcomes of the DSI - Surface Water & Sediment Results


• Results of samples collected up-gradient of the Base suggest a background source of PFAS

• This suggests that the Base is not the only source of PFAS to the surrounding environment.

DSI Recommendations


• Undertake a HHRA and ERA (in progress)

• Conduct aquatic and semi-aquatic biota sampling in the areas surrounding the Base (in progress)

• Conduct wet season groundwater, surface water and sediment monitoring (completed in April 2018)

• Develop a PFAS Management Area Plan to identify areas requiring management and / or remediation. A PFAS Management Area Plan will be developed

Non-DSI Field Investigations


• Samples of plants and animals have also been collected, including:– Estuarine: fish, prawns, crabs, samphire, mangroves– Semi-terrestrial: frogs, snakes, turtles, toads– Marine: fish, sea grass

• The results of these samples will be presented in the HHRA and ERA reports

• Wet season samples have also been collected, including:– Surface water, including

flush events– Groundwater– Sediment

• This information will be presented in an addendum report to the DSI report


Initial Fish Consumption Assessment• Queensland Health conducted an initial assessment of fish, prawns and mud crabs

caught in estuarine waters of Bohle River, Townsville Town Common, Louisa, Mundy and Three Mile Creeks

• Queensland Health concluded:– PFAS concentrations in prawn and mud crab samples were below the Food

Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) trigger point and were not assessed further

– PFAS concentrations in fish samples were not at a level that would change the standard fish consumption advice issued by FSANZ, which are protective of exposure to other substances, specifically mercury:

• 2 to 3 serves per week of 75 g of most fish for children up to 6 years• 2 to 3 serves per week of 150 g for the rest of the population.

• Includes all fish consumed, including wild caught, store purchased, farmed and tinned fish

• If required, this advice will be updated based on the findings of the Human Health Risk Assessment once completed


Aim: to conduct a detailed assessment to better understand the risk of PFAS to people within the Investigation Area.

• Throughout the investigation, analytical results will be compared to Health Based Guidance Values for tolerable daily intake, drinking water and recreational water to assess the need for the HHRA.

• The HHRA is a detailed, scientific process to evaluate risks to human health and assists in informing future action to mitigate risks in the PFAS Management Area Plan (PMAP).

• Involves consultation and input from agencies, experts and community.

• HHRA methodology prepared using NEPM and enHealth guidance.

Stage 3: Human Health Risk Assessment (HHRA)

Human Health Risk Assessment

What it can tell us X What it can’t tell us

Activities to avoid to minimise PFAS exposure (as per Queensland advice).

Activities where no adverse health effects are likely.

Cumulative exposure from multiple activities.

Inform future management actions.

Potential future health effects for individuals.

Whether existing health effects for individuals are associated with past exposure.

Medical advice.



Aim: to conduct a detailed assessment to better understand the risk of PFAS to ecological populations within the Investigation Area.

• Throughout the investigation, analytical results were compared to Ecological Guidance Values for aquatic ecosystems. As a result an ERA has commenced.

• The ERA is a detailed, scientific process to evaluate risks to the environment and assists in informing future action to mitigate risks in the PFAS Management Area Plan (PMAP).

• Involves consultation and input from agencies, experts and community.

• ERA methodology prepared using NEPM guidance.

Stage 3: Ecological Risk Assessment (ERA)

Ecological Risk Assessment What it can tell us X What it can’t tell us

Potential for ecosystems (plants and animals) to be exposed to PFAS above conservative screening levels.

Inform future management actions.

Predict adverse effects in ecosystems (plants and animals).



Aim: to identify areas requiring further management and requirements for further investigation to support these activities.

• The HHRA and ERA will identify any risks of exposure to humans and the environment that require management

• Potential management options will be detailed in the PFAS Management Area Plan (PMAP)

• Potential management and remediation options are determined by site-specific factors, including hydrogeology, the type of contamination, and access

• As such, the PFAS Management Area Plan is tailored to the unique conditions of the site

• The Ongoing Monitoring Plan will detail the locations to be monitored on a regular basis to understand changes to PFAS concentrations in the environment

PFAS Management Area Plan and Ongoing Monitoring Plan

Defence has adopted a precautionary approach and will provide alternative sources of drinking water to eligible residents who:

• are located in close proximity to the base; and• do not have a town water connection; and • rely on the use of a bore for drinking water; and/or• source drinking water from a rainwater tank that contains, or has in the past

contained, bore water.

At this point in time, no properties around the base have been identified as using bore water for drinking and therefore no properties are receiving alternative drinking water.

Provision of water will be assessed on a case-by-case basis and reviewed as required.

Provision of alternative drinking water


• Defence is committed to keeping base personnel and the community informed and will regularly engage with the community throughout the investigation.

– Project website – Project information line – Factsheets– Flyers– Advertisement – Individual correspondence on private

property results– Community information sessions at key milestones

Stakeholder and Community Engagement


• Project website - www.defence.gov.au/Environment/PFAS/Townsville• Ask questions about your specific circumstances with our

environmental consultants or the government agencies in attendance after the presentation.

To find out more• Take home the factsheets today.• Talk to our environmental consultants or the government agencies

after this presentation.• Contact the project team on 1800 842 122.

Further Information


Thank youContact us

Phone: 1800 842 122 free call (business hours)

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.defence.gov.au/Environment/PFAS/Townsville

Mail: PFAS Project TeamPO Box 12020George StreetQueensland 4003

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