PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 25, 2024
Nobody knows how much toxic firefighting foam concentrate there is in Maine, where it is, or if it is safely stored. But state environmental officials do know Brunswick Executive Airport isn’t the only place still using this kind of chemical concentrate to fight fires, nor is it the only place where the foam has been dumped on the ground, washed down sewer or storm drains, or spilled into streams and seas. It wasn’t until two years ago that Maine passed a law requiring people to report foam discharges to the state, so state records before that are spotty. But federal records show this week’s Brunswick spill is the biggest accidental discharge in Maine since it began keeping records in the 1990s.