Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Art Schaap said that he's had to exterminate more than half of his 4,000 cattle so far due to PFAS and PFOA contamination of the groundwater at his former Highland Dairy.
CLOVIS - The owner of a now-shuttered Clovis dairy said he is pleased the Environmental Protection Agency has announced its intent to list several per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) as hazardous chemicals under the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. Art Schaap is also pleased with a rule change that clarifies a state's authority to require cleanup of any waste that meets the RCRA standard.
All of it should have happened years ago, Schaap said.
"It's about time the government is doing its job," said Schaap, more than three years after the dairy he and Renee Schaap owned stopped delivering milk and shut down due to groundwater contamination that spread to the dairy's cattle. Highland Dairy was comprised of 640 acres the Schaaps control of 2,000 acres contiguous to and bordering Cannon Air Force Base.
The base is one of more than 100 military installations dealing with ramifications of the chemicals, which were used in firefighting foam for decades by military fire departments. The reason the chemicals are useful for firefighting foams and in other ways - because they don't break down easily - is the same reason they're a concern in water supplies.
Because of their pervasiveness, the Centers for Disease Control has estimated 95% of Americans have some level of PFAS in their bodies.
On Oct. 26, the EPA sent a response letter to a June petition from New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham. The petition noted state efforts to push the Department of Defense to clean up contamination near military installation had been met with a lawsuit challenging the state's authority in such matters.
Schaap said he owned 4,000 cattle, all contaminated by the PFAS that traveled beyond the base. Because of the contamination, he cannot sell the milk they produce or sell the cattle as meat.
"I have not exterminated all of my cattle but about half of them have died so far," Schaap said. "The (government's) inaction has allowed these animals to suffer. If the animal rights people saw the mess I have, it would be overwhelming for these people."
Schaap said he has spoken with Cannon leadership, and has been told the base is limited to addressing human consumption of drinking water because there is no EPA standard. Once an EPA standard is set, Schaap said, the RCRA Superfund could be tapped to defray cleanup costs.
"They know they've exposed everybody (but) a standard had not been set," Schaap said. "They have been kicking the can down the road.
"But now the standard is going to be set. It will be in law and whoever represents the people who have been affected can put pressure on the polluters to clean up the pollution. The sad part is that it has been only an advisory (to this point). "
Cannon's Public Affairs office referred questions to the Department of Defense's office, which subsequently referred questions to the EPA.
