Cape Breton firefighter union seeking ban on chemicals in gear, foam

The union that represents firefighters in Cape Breton Regional Municipality is raising concerns about what it says are toxic and carcinogenic chemicals found in their gear and in a foam used during gasoline spills, such as the major one last summer in Sydney, N.S.

The International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) says per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, a class of thousands of chemicals known as PFAS, are carcinogenic and pose a risk to firefighters.

Donnie Whalen, president of IAFF Local 2779 in CBRM, said PFAS are found in one layer of firefighters' bunker gear and in the foam used last July during a 600,000-litre gas spill at Imperial Oil's storage facilities next to a residential neighbourhood in Sydney.

"They've all been known as forever chemicals," he said. "They don't leave your system. They don't break down naturally. Studies have shown that firefighters have higher levels in their bloodstream than the general public does."

Because of that, PFAS are banned or restricted to a limited number of uses in Europe and Australia and moves are being made to follow suit in the United States and Canada.

Environment Canada is considering further regulating or banning the chemicals, and is open to public comments until mid-July.

PFAS are used in firefighters' outerwear as a water repellent and in firefighting foam to keep petroleum products from vaporizing and possibly catching fire. They have been linked to the increased risk of cancer — and death from cancer — in firefighters.

Last year, the Halifax fire service began looking at increased safety measures to protect members.

Cape Breton Regional Municipality fire Chief Michael Seth said he is concerned about the chemicals in the gear and foam, but the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs and the IAFF are just starting to discuss what can be done about them.

Seth said last summer that the foam was biodegradable and safe. But since then more information has come out on PFAS chemicals, he said recently.

"It's a new conversation that's starting nationally and when we first had this conversation, my understanding was the foam was completely biodegradable and we really didn't have any other issues with it," Seth said.

Different foams

Because of the size of the spill at the Sydney tank farm last summer, CBRM had to request a special firefighting truck and aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) from the local airport, which has two large vehicles for spreading industrial amounts of the foam in case of large fuel spills.

Whalen said CBRM fire service has its own foam for petroleum spills, but it's a milder version that is usually only used for small spills, such as around a motor vehicle accident.

"Ours is used for fire suppression only, not fume suppression, which is what the AFFF has done. Our foam, I believe, is safe. Our foam is basically a dish detergent. It breaks the surface tension of the water down so it can penetrate into wood and that type of fire."

The department might use four or five litres of foam chemical at a vehicle fire, whereas the department used up to 5,000 litres of an industrial version at the Imperial Oil spill, Whalen said.

Whalen said he has some concerns, but people in the neighbourhood next to the Imperial Oil storage site probably do not need to worry.

"As long as the public has no direct contact with the product ... [and] as long as it's remediated properly, it should be safe," he said.

"The problem is usually after it's been used, somebody's got to walk through it. Someone has to remediate it."

Whalen said he's not sure how that remediation was done, because that was left up to Imperial Oil.

In an email, Imperial would only say the fuel and foam were pumped into an empty storage tank and then taken off site by a contractor for safe disposal.

Neil McMillan, an Ottawa firefighter and director of science and research with IAFF, said PFAS chemicals are the number one topic in Canada and the U.S. when requests come to the research division.

"They've been associated with a number of cancers, with metabolic disorders, cardiovascular disease, as well as a host of negative reproductive outcomes," he said.

They're also notoriously difficult to eradicate once ingested by people or animals or absorbed into the environment.

"When the genie is out of the bottle, the damage is done," McMillan said.

Residents right to be concerned: McMillan

That's why the IAFF is lobbying to have PFAS removed from firefighter gear and foams and is pressing for government financial assistance so departments can replace their gear once safer alternatives are found.

Residents in areas where PFAS chemicals have been used should be concerned, McMillan said.

"Knowing that the health outcomes can be quite dire, I think that any residents where AFFF foam has been utilized should ask questions as to contamination," he said.

McMillan also encouraged the public to comment on the federal government's proposed changes to the handling and use of PFAS, and said he hopes government will ban them and add teeth to its enforcement of a ban.

"It is an insidious class of chemicals that's left a legacy of illness in its wake, and it's incumbent not just on firefighters but other people vested in public health to ensure that we do all we can to restrict and eliminate the use of PFAS," McMillan said.

Residents living next to Imperial Oil's tank farm have said they want the facility moved over concerns about possible exposure to contaminants.

Grace Arsenault, spokesperson for the residents' group Future of the North End, said they have asked for soil and water testing, but no one has provided that to residents.

She said Imperial Oil has done testing on its property, but residents have not been told what the results were.

"If somebody lives next to something that was bad for their health, that was dangerous, that information should never be withheld," Arsenault said.

She said one neighbour threw out the vegetables from her garden last fall over concerns that they might be contaminated and some are expressing concerns about planting new gardens this year.

Now, Arsenault has another worry about the chemicals used to contain the spill.

"It's not a good feeling to know that that's what's next to people's homes," she said.

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