Gyeonggi-do to Investigate Whether US Military Bases Contain Carcinogens

[Asia Economy (Uijeongbu) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Gyeonggi Province will conduct a joint public-private contamination survey on U.S. military bases.

Gyeonggi Province announced on the 3rd that it will conduct a "joint public-private contamination survey" targeting 13 groundwater wells around two U.S. military bases located in Uijeongbu City, together with Uijeongbu City and environmental NGO groups, over two days on the 6th and 7th.

This survey is a measure to ensure the safety of residents and alleviate their concerns following media reports that carcinogenic "perfluorinated compounds" (PFOA, PFOS) were detected in groundwater at U.S. military bases in South Korea.

Some media recently reported, citing a report published by the U.S. Department of Defense in March 2018, that perfluorinated compounds exceeding the standard level (70 ppt) by up to 15 times were detected in groundwater at five U.S. military bases in South Korea. Among these, the bases located in Gyeonggi Province are Camp Red Cloud and Camp Stanley in Uijeongbu.

Perfluorinated compounds are substances mainly used in firefighting agents and coatings, and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) among them is classified as a carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).

Accordingly, the province decided to investigate a total of 13 wells, including 10 wells confirmed to be used as domestic or drinking water within 100 meters of the bases and 3 wells outside the 100-meter range, out of 18 wells within 100 meters of the bases.

In particular, to ensure objectivity and transparency, the survey will be conducted jointly with two local environmental NGO groups active in the area: the Uijeongbu Sustainable Development Council and the Uiyang-dong Environmental Movement Federation.

The province plans to collect samples from the wells and request analysis from the Gyeonggi Provincial Institute of Health and Environment to determine the concentration of perfluorinated compounds.

Depending on the survey results, wells exceeding the drinking water quality monitoring standards will be subject to usage bans and purification measures.

Additionally, to ensure the safety of local residents, regular environmental pollution monitoring activities will be conducted around the U.S. military base areas.

A provincial official stated, "Since realizing a safe life in Gyeonggi Province is a pledge of Governor Lee Jae-myung in the 7th local government, we will strive to reduce residents' concerns and create a safe environment through thorough and precise investigations."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.