United States Air Force Bases Research Articles

Patterns of contamination and burden of lead and arsenic in rooftop harvested rainwater collected in Arizona environmental justice communities

As climate change exacerbates water scarcity, rainwater harvesting for household irrigation and gardening becomes an increasingly common practice. However, the use and quality of harvested rainwater are not well studied, and the potential pollutant exposures associated with its use are generally unknown. There are currently no federal standards in the United States to assess metal(loid)s in harvested rainwater. Project Harvest, a community science research project, was created to address this knowledge gap and study the quality of harvested rainwater, primarily used for irrigation, in four environmental justice communities in Arizona, USA. Community scientists collected 577 unique rooftop harvested rainwater samples from 2017 to 2020, which were analyzed for metal(loid)s, where arsenic (As) concentrations ranged from 0.108 to 120 μg L−1 and lead (Pb) concentrations ranged from 0.013 to 350 μg L−1 and compared to relevant federal/state standards/recommendations. Community As and Pb concentrations decreased as: Hayden/Winkelman > Tucson > Globe/Miami > Dewey-Humboldt. Linear mixed models were used to analyze rooftop harvested rainwater data and results indicated that concentrations of As and Pb in the summer monsoon were significantly greater than winter; and contamination was significantly greater closer to extractive industrial sites in three of the four study communities (ASARCO Hayden Plant Superfund Alternative site in Hayden/Winkelman, Davis-Monthan United States Air Force Base in Tucson - Pb only, and Freeport McMoRan Copper and Gold Mine in Globe/Miami). Based on models, infrastructure such as proximity to roadway, roof material, presence of a cistern screen, and first-flush systems were not significant with respect to As and Pb when controlling for relevant spatiotemporal variables; whereas, cistern age was associated with Pb concentrations. These results however, indicate that concentrations vary seasonally and by proximity to industrial activity, not by decisions made regarding collection system infrastructures at the individual home level. This study shows that generally, individuals are not responsible for environmental contamination of rooftop harvested rainwater, rather activities and decisions of government and corporate industries control contaminant release.

Development of novel fluor mop materials for remediation of perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from groundwater

In this study we synthesized a library of 12 novel adsorbent materials that utilize a chemically well-defined silica support for superior removal of PFAS from real groundwater from a contaminated United States Air Force base. The library of sorbents probed the importance of a fluorous, hydrophobic, and electrostatic components in the removal efficacy. The materials were assessed in batch studies with PFOA, PFOS, and PFBA and compared directly to GAC and Ion Exchange resin. Adsorption kinetics with PFOS were best fit to a pseudo-second order model and equilibrium data fit well to a Langmuir isotherm model. The results were also validated externally, and the best performing material removed greater than 90% of 8 PFAS tested and was able to be regenerated up to 5 cycles. The results provide a top performing material that with further testing can be used to clean up environmentally contaminated water and provide support for the theory that a fluorous component when combined with the electrostatic and hydrophobic components, imparts both enhanced PFAS selectivity and functional resilience to the material.

Assessing aerobic biotransformation of 8:2 fluorotelomer alcohol in aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF)-impacted soils: Pathways and microbial community dynamics

Production of 8:2 fluorotelomer alcohol (8:2 FTOH) for industrial and consumer products, including aqueous film-forming foams (AFFFs) used for firefighting, has resulted in its widespread occurrence in the environment. However, the fate of 8:2 FTOH at AFFF-impacted sites remains largely unknown. Using AFFF-impacted soils from two United States Air Force Bases, microcosm experiments evaluated the aerobic biotransformation of 8:2 FTOH (extent and byproduct formation) and the dose-response on microbial communities due to 8:2 FTOH exposure. Despite different microbial communities, rapid transformation of 8:2 FTOH was observed during a 90-day incubation in the two soils, and 7:2 secondary fluorotelomer alcohol (7:2 sFTOH) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) were detected as major transformation products. Novel transformation products, including perfluoroalkane-like compounds (1H-perfluoroheptane, 1H-perfluorohexane, and perfluoroheptanal) were identified by liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS) and used to develop aerobic 8:2 FTOH biotransformation pathways. Microbial community analysis suggests that species from genus Sphingomonas are potential 8:2 FTOH degraders based on increased abundance in both soils after exposure, and the genus Afipia may be more tolerant to and/or involved in the transformation of 8:2 FTOH at elevated concentrations. These findings demonstrate the potential role of biological processes on PFAS fate at AFFF-impacted sites through fluorotelomer biotransformation.

Long-Term Fate of Agent Orange and Dioxin TCDD Contaminated Soils and Sediments in Vietnam Hotspots

The soils, tropical climate, and network of canals and rivers of southern Vietnam have created one of the most diverse tropical jungles and intensely cultivated landscapes of Southeast Asia. This paradise has a long history of numerous wars, foreign occupations, and most recently the Second Indochina War (aka the Vietnam War 1965-1972) which defoliated rain forests and ancient wetland mangroves and left behind contaminated soil and sediment hotspots. During this war, the United States (US) military sprayed 80 million liters of Agent Orange contaminated with the dioxin TCDD in a guerrilla war against communist insurgents. Agent Orange was a synthetic plant growth regulator comprised of equal amounts of two herbicides 2,4-dichloro phenoxyacetic acid C8H6Cl2O3 (2,4-D) and 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid C8H5Cl3O3 (2,4,5-T). TCDD, the dioxin, 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzodioxin (C12H4Cl4O2) was an unintended byproduct of the accelerated combustion process used in the manufacture of herbicides containing 2,4,5-T. Agent Orange has frequently been blamed for soil and sediment contamination and long-term human health problems; however, the true source of harm is the dioxin TCDD. Agent Orange has a short half-life of days and weeks after application to vegetation, and has not been found to persist, after 50 years, in the water or soils of southern Vietnam. However, the half-life of dioxin TCDD depends on where it is deposited and varies from 1 to 3 years on soil surfaces that have been fully exposed to sunlight, to as long as 20 to 50 years or more when buried in tropical subsoils, and more than 100 years in river and sea sediments. Dioxin TCDD was heavily concentrated in the US Air Force bases in Vietnam where the herbicides were stored, loaded on planes and helicopters for aerial spraying, and used extensively around military base perimeter fences as a security measure to prevent surprise attacks. Bien Hoa Air Force base, 40 km northeast of Ho Chi Minh City, continues to be one of the mega-hotspots where after 48 years the dioxin TCDD levels in fish and shrimp are still high and fishing is banned in ponds and lakes adjacent to the airbase. Although expensive, one of the most effective remediation to dioxin TCDD contaminated soils is incineration which is the recommended method of dioxin TCDD disposal.

A longitudinal investigation of the psychological health of United States Air Force base communities

AbstractThe longitudinal course of the psychological health (PH) of United States Air Force (USAF) base communities in relation to risk and demographic factors was studied over a 5‐year period. PH (clinically significant hazardous drinking, prescription drug misuse, depressive symptoms, suicidal thoughts and behaviors, intimate partner violence [IPV] and child abuse) and risk (personal and family adjustment, workplace adjustment, broader community adjustment) and demographic factors (age and gender distribution) were operationalized at the aggregate level for bases (N = 77) as measured in three large scale surveys of USAF active duty members. Bases whose members collectively exhibited greater levels of risk collectively experienced greater initial problems with alcohol and drug use, depression, suicidality, and physical IPV. Hazardous drinking more quickly increased at bases whose members were younger and more male, and at those with poorer initial aggregate personal adjustment and workplace adjustment. The challenges of studying the community‐level course of PH are highlighted.

Petroleum and Chlorinated Hydrocarbon Analysis in Support of In Vitro Studies of Natural Anaerobic and Aerobic Microbial Degradation of Xenobiotics in Contaminated Groundwater and Soil

Abstract This program investigated in situ biological degradation as a remedial treatment technique at a United States Air Force Base in Texas. Soil and groundwater samples from the site were characterized regarding microbial populations and presence or absence of priority pollutant xenobiotics and petroleum hydrocarbon components. Time-series analyses of replicate nutrient-amended microcosms after approximately 1, 25, 50 and 100 days permitted aerobic and anaerobic degradation rate evaluation. Microcosm integrity was demonstrated throughout the experiment by observing appropriate dissolved oxygen, pH, oxidation/reduction potential, and sterile/viable conditions. Gas chromatographic analysis and ratios of straight-chain and isoprenoid components clearly demonstrated that aerobic conditions were preferred for degradation of aliphatic and aromatic petroleum hydrocarbons. Electron capture gas chromatographic analyses and purge-and-trap gas chromatographic/mass spectrometric analyses of lower molecular weight...

Implementation Planning for a USAF-Wide Cardiovascular-Risk-Reduction Program

Abstract A proposed cardiovascular-disease (CVD) risk-reduction program for United States Air Force (USAF) personnel, the HEART Program, is discussed. We are interested in determining an implementation sequence of bases for the USAF-wide introduction of the HEART Program. A nonlinear 0-1 integer programming model which considers CVD risk, CVD cost, rated flyers, and interbase transfers in choosing a start-up sequence for 118 USAF bases is presented. Heuristic methods for simplifying the model are presented, as are four solutions.

Banbury hosts us nurses visit.

RCN Banbury Branch Chairperson, Bernadette Granger, recently played host to five nurses from the nearby Upper Heyford United States Air Force base when they visited Horton General Hospital in Banbury.

Carried Lumber Company v. United States of America (Directorate of Procurement of The Philippine Air Force Depot (Secondary) Clark Air Force Base)

Sovereign immunity — Foreign State — Extent of immunity — Restrictive theory — Commercial transaction — Contract for the supply of lumber to United States Air Force base — State acting in capacity of private person — The law of the Philippines

Enzootic aspergillosis in wild red vented cockatoos in the Philippines.

Philippine Red Vented Cockatoos were being trapped in the wild and dispersed directly to private homes, aviaries, pet stores and for export to the United States of America. Except for non-aggressive behaviour and tiring easily the subjects showed clinically nothing peculiar. Numerous cases of Aspergillosis with no clinical signs prior to death were being reported at the United States Air Force Base, Clark Field, Angeles City, Philippines. In all cases stress was a predisposing factor to death; such as enclosure in a small bird cage. Those birds in aviaries that were kept free-flying remained clinically normal, with no deaths recorded. Systematic examination to determine the causative source of infection was carried out and revealed natural infection in the wild state as the cause of disease in caged Red Vented Cockatoos in the Philippines. Examination on three other species of Philippine Pstitticine birds revealed only the Red Vented Cockatoo to be infected or a latent carrier in the wild state.

An Approach to Counselor Education—in Europe

I find myself wanting to deal with one of the topics about which we as counselor educators know least, namely the bearing of motivation on the behavior of adult learners. In 1962 C. Gilbert Wrenn and the Com mission of Guidance in American Schools wrote pro foundly that the quality of a graduate program in coun selor preparation depends upon: (1) the quality of the total institutional resources and the extent to which they are appreciated and utilized, (2) the extent to which the graduate faculty involved are professionally qualified for their teaching, advising, and supervising responsibili ties in the program, and (3) a student-faculty ratio for the core faculty in counselor education which permits attention to individual graduate student development and the most effective use of institutional resources in this development.1 I offer some conjectures about a number of develop ments of a European counselor education program which have a bearing on the proposals outlined by Wrenn in 1962. The Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services, Ball State University offers a Mas ters of Arts degree program in Counseling at six United States Air Force bases in Europe. The degree is open to military, military-related, dependents, and school per sonnel. Courses are offered in rotation, two per ten week quarter, each of the four quarters of the year. Classes meet 6:30 to 10:20 two nights per week. A student may complete the program overseas in as few as six 10-week quarters. Admission requires a bachelor's degree, with any major, from an accredited college or university. Study includes such courses as Abnormal Psychol ogy, Psychology of Occupations, Psychology of Adult Adjustment, Introduction to the Study of Personality, Tests and Measurements, Process and Techniques of Group Counseling, Social Psychology, Theories of Counseling, and Practicum in Counseling. We en deavored to develop a bona fide continuum of learning experience in which totally planned learn ing was fused from the beginning in a way that kept duplication from becoming a problem. Personal and goals include (1) knowl edge of academic material, a sound foundation prerequi site to any sustained motivation; (2) facilities available for self-exploration, for the individual to extend him self and to learn more about himself which then gives direction to his total being; (3) understanding of the humanness of the individuals who are in charge and under our influences, being fully aware that qualities of warmth, sincerity, and responsiveness make a counselor effective no matter what his techniques; (4) the profes sional skills, sensitivities, and abilities of the counselor; (5) professional insight, a sound attitude toward other individuals, viewing them clinically, respecting their opinions, and avoiding the temptations to exploit another in order to meet one's own unmet personal needs.

“Wars Will Cease When…”

When I was passing through England not long ago, a news photo in the Daily Telegraph caught my attention. The front page showed a picture of English students, the Cambridge Peace Action Group, carrying a sign before the married quarters area of the United States Air Force Base in Suffolk. “Wars will cease,” the banner logically proclaimed, “when men refuse to fight.”Today, of course, when we see signs advising men to refuse to fight, we are almost always talking about the war in Vietnam. A good deal of information about the war in Vietnam, its history, its circumstances, and its problems is available to the general population. Everyone is aware of the Green Beret, of French colonialism, General Giap's theory of guerrilla warfare, the Seventh Fleet, Ho Chi Minh, napalm, Madam Nu, burning Buddhists, the bomb, the Gulf of Tonkin, General de Gaulle's theories, Dien Bien Phu, the Oakland Army Base, Cam Ramh Bay, the black market in Saigon, Viet Cong assassinations, the thousands of American dead, Senator Fulbright's Hearings, the elections in South Vietnam, the Geneva Conference, the 325th Division of the North Vietnamese Army, the Demarcation Zone, and General Ky's black flying suit with the purple scarf. These and a host of other images are never far from our Vietnamese reflections.

Civil Jurisdiction of Canadian Courts over United States Military Personnel in Canada

THE recent case of Gallant v. West' involved an action for an alleged libel committed in line of duty by a military commander of a United States air force base in Newfoundland. The claim alleged that a regulation issued by commander for troops under his command, placing offlimits a portion of plaintiff's hotel, was libellous and detrimental to his business. Walsh C.J. of Supreme Court of Newfoundland accepted commander's plea of privilege. He considered that the North Atlantic Treaty incorporates existing law in respect of civil claims, and that forces of a friendly state in Canadian territory by consent for public purposes of their state stand, in respect of civil claims against their commanders for acts done in performance of their duty, in same position as Her Majesty's Canadian Forces in any part of Canada.2 The learned Justice was quite correct in his conception of Canadian law in respect of status of visiting forces. A similar position has been taken in several British decisions. The case of Szalatnay-Stacho v. Fink3 concerned an action for libel allegedly committed within course of his official duty by public prosecutor of Czechoslovak military court of appeal, a tribunal established in United Kingdom under Allied Forces Act, 1940.4 It is significant that here also defence contained no plea of immunity, and was based entirely on absolute or qualified privilege. According to Czech law no action founded on libel could be brought against a state official for his actions in that capacity. Somervell L.J. held on appeal that comity of nations did not compel courts in Great Britain to apply Czechoslovak law to acts done in Great Britain and applying lex loci delicti commissi held defendant entitled only to defence of qualified privilege. A similar position was taken by Goddard C.J. in Reeves v. DeaneFreeman.5 The plaintiff was injured by a lorry belonging to Canadian army, which was being driven by defendant, a Canadian soldier, in course of his duty. Again, no plea of immunity was made. The claim was rejected on ground that by virtue of section 2(3) (b) of Visiting Forces (British Commonwealth) Act, 1933,' defendant was entitled to