PFAS Plume Reduction Planned At Willow Grove Navy Base

HORSHAM TOWNSHIP, PA — A new groundwater treatment center is coming at the former Willow Grove Naval Base off Route 611 to combat PFAS.

Horsham Township Council members, Township Manager Bill Walker, State Rep. Melissa Cerrato, and the Horsham Land Redevelopment Authority attended the recent ceremony for the groundbreaking.

The ceremony was for a groundwater extraction and treatment system to reduce and control the PFAS plume in the groundwater under the Navy Base property.

PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are chemicals that have been found in drinking water and were used for decades in firefighting foam and other industrial materials.

Communities near military bases have traditionally seen higher levels of PFAS, also known as 'forever chemicals,' because they are said to stick around for thousands of years, and many local officials in these areas have taken measures to address the issue.

Horsham Township and surrounding communities have dealt with PFAS chemicals from the former Willow Grove Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base.

Those communities include: Horsham, Abington, Upper Dublin, Hatboro, and Upper Moreland in Montgomery County and Ivyland, Warminster, Warrington, Northampton, Upper Southampton, and Warwick in Bucks County.

Once operational, the new groundwater system will treat up to 500 gallons per minute of PFAS contaminated ground water.

(Horsham Township)