Military Airstrips Are Poisoning People's Wells

Steve and Sandy Swanson were in a festive mood. It was an early December day and their house was ready for Christmas. We already had our Christmas tree up, Swanson remembers. The house looked beautiful. But, then, a representative of the Navy knocked on the door of their home on top of a ridge on Whidbey Island, She walked in, and she seemed genuinely moved by the bad news she was going to have to tell us, Swanson says. The bad news was that the Swansons well is contaminated. It has six times the Environmental Protection Agencys health advisory level of what are called perfluorinated chemicals. These are chemicals that have been linked to cancer, thyroid and liver problems, and low birth weight and other developmental problems. A 2009 study by the Washington Department of Ecology found these chemicals in waterways and wildlife in the Pacific Northwest--but the states plan to deal with the problem is six years behind schedule. The moment the Swansons learned about their well water, they