Comprehensive PFAS Exposure Assessment, Groundwater Modeling, and Environmental Forensics for a Large-Scale Airfield With Historical PFAS Contamination
RoseyFields conducted a comprehensive exposure assessment to evaluate historical environmental contamination originating from an airfield and firefighting training facility. Our team investigated the widespread environmental releases of aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) historically utilized during aircraft rescue and firefighting training exercises, facility fire suppression system testing, and emergency response operations. We evaluated the subsequent environmental impacts of Per- and Polyfluorinated Alkyl Substances (PFAS), focusing specifically on the long-term presence of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), perfluorohexane sulfonate (PFHxS), and related PFOA precursors in the surrounding environment.
To accurately characterize the fate and transport of these persistent contaminants, our team performed extensive environmental modeling and technical analyses. We evaluated the complex migration pathways from the facility’s source areas—including former fire training areas, unlined stormwater ponds, and hangar facilities—into regional groundwater aquifers and public water supply wells. Utilizing advanced groundwater evaluation techniques and dynamic well-mixed distribution system models, RoseyFields reconstructed historical contaminant concentrations across multiple, interconnected municipal water pressure zones. Furthermore, we conducted sophisticated environmental forensics and chemical fingerprinting to identify the distinct PFAS signatures of various proprietary AFFF formulations, effectively tracing the contaminants from downgradient water supplies directly back to their historical operational sources.
Based on our detailed reconstruction of historical exposure point concentrations, we evaluated the potential human health impacts on the affected communities relying on the impacted municipal water systems. Our experts conducted comprehensive cancer and non-cancer human health risk assessments, isolating the primary exposure pathway of long-term drinking water ingestion. By analyzing historical regional water demand, the physical infrastructure of the municipal distribution systems, and the geographic boundaries of residential service areas, RoseyFields successfully identified and characterized the exposed population. This rigorous, multi-disciplinary approach allowed us to accurately quantify the duration and magnitude of historical exposure for the affected residents, providing a robust scientific foundation for understanding the associated toxicological risks.
This investigation was conducted under the direction of Dr. Paul Rosenfeld, an environmental scientist and environmental forensic expert with extensive experience in environmental exposure assessment, toxicology, air quality, environmental fate and transport, risk assessment, and environmental forensics. Through RoseyFields LLC, Dr. Rosenfeld provides scientific consulting, environmental forensic analysis, regulatory support, and expert witness services involving environmental contamination, human exposure, and public health. His technical oversight helped ensure that the methodologies, scientific interpretations, and conclusions presented in this case study are consistent with accepted scientific principles and current best practices.