NASA’s Ongoing Efforts to Address PFAS are Making a Difference

In 2016, NASA began investigating Wallops Flight Facility’s use of materials containing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The investigation revealed the use of aqueous film-forming foam, known as ‘AFFF.’ AFFF, which contains PFAS, is the most effective product for extinguishing aircraft fires and was used at Wallops in fire training operations and emergency response beginning in the late 1970s. As a result of this use, there were known or suspected releases of AFFF to the environment. Today, Wallops only uses AFFF for aircraft emergencies.

NASA IS TAKING ACTION

Protecting the Area’s Water Supply

Town of Chincoteague

Following the 2016 investigation, NASA initiated a groundwater testing program. In 2017, PFAS was detected in the Town of Chincoteague’s (Town) drinking water supply wells located on NASA property. NASA immediately took action to protect public health.

Pumping from the Town’s shallow wells was stopped, and NASA began supplementing the Town’s water supply with water from Wallops’ drinking water system. NASA also began work on a groundwater treatment system to allow pumping from the Town’s shallow groundwater supply wells to resume.

The groundwater treatment system, funded, designed, and installed by NASA, can treat 410 gallons per minute of groundwater from wells that supply water to the Town’s drinking water system to prevent exposure to PFAS in drinking water. Under a permit from the Virginia Department of Health, the system has been fully operational since April 2021 and has successfully removed PFAS, meeting EPA’s drinking water standards well before they were finalized.

The Town’s wells are sampled quarterly, and drinking water is sampled monthly using EPA approved methods. All results are shared with the Town and with federal and state health and environmental agencies. Results show the drinking water meets EPA drinking water standards which were finalized in April 2024.

How Groundwater Treatment Works

The treatment system uses a proven technology for removing PFAS known as granular activated carbon (GAC). Four large tanks each contain 10,000 pounds of granular activated carbon (GAC). As groundwater passes through the tanks, GAC adsorbs the PFAS. Over time, the GAC becomes saturated and needs to be replaced. The tanks are set up so when the GAC is being replaced, another tank takes the lead, and the other tanks provide backup. This layout ensures PFAS removal is continuous.   

NASA’s ongoing testing shows that the Treatment System supplying the Town of Chincoteague’s Water Succeeds in Removing PFAS and Continues to Meet EPA National Drinking Water Standards.

On NASA’s Main Base

NASA supplemented Wallops’ Main Base drinking water supply by installing a new water supply well in 2023. The well replaces Well No. 5, which was shut down in January 2019 after tests showed low concentrations of PFAS. These detections were attributed to the age of the well and historic construction methods used.

Monitoring PFAS in the Environment

NASA’s priority is to prevent PFAS exposure from drinking water.

NASA regularly monitors groundwater in the vicinity of Wallops to understand the nature and extent of PFAS in the environment and then takes action to remove, treat, or contain it. NASA has a network of 23 groundwater monitoring wells at and around the Wallops Main Base and samples these wells quarterly.

Surface water is also being sampled in Little Mosquito Creek and Jenny’s Gut on Wallops’ Main Base, helping NASA to understand:

• How groundwater and surface water interact
• How PFAS are moving in the environment
• What areas may require PFAS cleanup activities
• Which remedial technologies are most effective

TARGETED CLEANUP AND PILOT STUDIES

NASA has completed the first phases of Remedial Investigations (RI), which included nearly a year of extensive field work activities in the areas of Main Base East, Main Base North, and Wallops Island. This work helps define the nature and extent of PFAS in the environmental media of these specific areas, and the results are used to determine if further actions are needed to protect public health and the environment.

In addition to investigation work, NASA continues to explore technologies and methods to remove or reduce PFAS in the environment. At the same time, the groundwater treatment system in place is operating successfully to prevent exposure to PFAS in the Town’s drinking water system.

Preventing Discharges to Surface Water

Preventing the movement of PFAS from groundwater to surface water helps eliminate potential exposure. During initial investigations, NASA identified a groundwater ‘seep’ containing PFAS discharging to surface water near Main Base Outfall 3. NASA designed and installed a treatment system in 2022 to capture seep water and remove PFAS before discharging the water to surface water. Later that year and in 2023, NASA implemented upgrades to the system such as adding baffles to slow the water for improved treatment time and effectiveness. Additionally, NASA has worked to increase capture of the actual seep as it changes seasonally and over time. These measures have increased the system’s effectiveness.

Protecting the Streams

Pilot testing of various treatment methods began in 2022 at the Main Base Outfalls 3 and 10 to remove PFAS before it enters Little Mosquito Creek and Jenney’s Gut. Adsorbent material that captures PFAS in its pores was placed along the stream bed and right into the stream flow in certain places.

Based on the pilot tests results, NASA is designing a groundwater containment system to limit PFAS in groundwater from migrating to the stream and to Little Mosquito Creek.

NASA is also designing a pilot study to evaluate the use of a permeable reactive barrier to remove PFAS from groundwater before it reaches surface water in the eastern portion of the facility. The barrier design will include activated carbon injected into the ground that will adsorb the PFAS and prevent it from migrating to the surface water.

Upgrading Infrastructure

Shallow groundwater containing PFAS was discovered entering the wastewater collection system on Wallops Island in 2022. NASA took action by permanently sealing two manholes and repairing a broken wastewater line in June 2023 to reduce groundwater infiltration. Post-repair sampling has shown a decrease of greater than 80% in PFAS entering the system to the lowest levels since sampling began in 2017.

Additionally, a wastewater infrastructure conditions assessment was completed on Wallops Island and the Main Base that NASA used to develop an infrastructure rehabilitation design plan. The new and improved infrastructure will be watertight and should substantially eliminate groundwater infiltration, lowering the PFAS entering the wastewater treatment plant and subsequent discharge.

Treating WWTP Effluent

NASA continues testing methods to reduce PFAS in the Wallops wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluent. In general, wastewater treatment involves aeration, a process that causes foam to form. The foam at the WWTP has been found to contain PFAS. To address this, NASA has added a foam removal system to the effluent sump where aeration causes the foam to form. NASA is also doubling the foam system’s run time and removing the additional volume of foam. These efficiencies are part of NASA’s efforts to remove PFAS from the WWTP effluent. NASA will continue to monitor the effectiveness of these efforts.

TRACKING NEW REGULATIONS & DEVELOPMENTS

NASA is using the latest scientific information and regulatory guidance available for investigations at Wallops.

National drinking water standards for six PFAS, outlined in the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) PFAS Strategic Roadmap, were finalized on April 10, 2024. The EPA drinking water standards apply to five individual PFAS and several that occur as mixtures. The regulation requires public water systems to monitor these chemicals, to notify the public if levels are exceeded, and to reduce levels below the legal standard. The technology NASA uses to remove PFAS from groundwater is a technology referenced by EPA as being effective.

EPA-approved analytical methods now exist for 40 unique PFAS in drinking water. NASA tests for these 40 PFAS and continues to increase the number of PFAS included in our analyses as new EPA-approved methods and certified laboratories become available. All results are provided to the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, the Virginia Department of Health, and the EPA for their review and input on the next steps.

EPA has a total of 15 PFAS regional screening levels (RSLs) for groundwater and soil. RSLs help NASA determine if further investigation is needed or action is required to protect public health. As new RSLs are developed, NASA reviews investigation results against the latest levels.

In September 2024, EPA finalized national recommended water quality criteria for the two most-studied PFAS – PFOA and PFOS – in saltwater, as well as benchmarks for eight other PFAS compounds in freshwater. These are intended to provide further direction for states in developing water quality standards and discharge limits under the Clean Water Act.

KEEPING YOU INFORMED

NASA remains committed to communicating about our ongoing efforts to address PFAS at and in the vicinity of Wallops. NASA hosts periodic information sessions for community members and employees at Wallops where people are welcome to look at displays that feature the latest project photos and descriptions. Team members, along with state and federal health officials, are also available to answer questions and discuss current activities.

NASA regularly posts updates to this website to provide information about the progress being made.

For more information, contact:
Jeremy Eggers, Wallops Office of Communications