While defending our country, veterans faced countless dangers, from permanent hearing loss to traumatic brain injuries.
Still, a more obscure risk serving in the military entails is toxic exposure, which is responsible for crippling diseases among veterans. As a consequence of negligence, the vast majority of military bases nationwide are now contaminated with toxic substances.

The city of Fayetteville is home to over 25,600 veterans, some of whom have been stationed at polluted military bases during active duty.

Established in 1918, the installation is the largest in the country by population, with 43,414 active-duty military personnel training and living there. Today, the military base is known as Fort Liberty, as it had originally been named after a Confederate.

Unfortunately, the environment of the military base is contaminated with perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly known as PFAS or “forever chemicals.” Out of this group of over 9,000 toxic chemicals, PFOA and PFOS are the most harmful, as they have a strong association with cancer.

According to the new safe exposure limits proposed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the concentration of PFOA and PFOS in the environment of Fort Liberty is very high. Specifically, the PFOA level exceeds the maximum limit by 6,400 times, while the PFOS level eclipses the proposed limits by 1,135 times.

These chemicals are emerging contaminants, being able to persist in the environment for over a thousand years. They are challenging to remove from groundwater and soil, even with the most innovative technologies.

A military base with a significantly worse legacy of toxic contamination is Camp Lejeune, located in Jacksonville. For 34 years during the last century, two of the eight water distribution plants at the facility were heavily contaminated with solvents, including trichloroethylene and vinyl chloride.

As many as one million people lived there while the drinking water was unsafe to consume. PFAS were also lurking in Camp Lejeune’s water in a concentration exceeding the current safe exposure limit by over 2,500 times.

In the past, veterans affected by toxic exposure on military bases had a difficult time obtaining the VA benefits they were entitled to. Today, by virtue of the Honoring Our PACT Act, they have easier access to the healthcare and compensation they deserve.

This bill was signed into law on Aug. 10, 2022. According to the Department of Veteran Affairs, the PACT Act is one of the largest health care and benefit expansions in VA history. The full name of the law is The Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act.

The Honoring Our PACT Act extends the VA healthcare eligibility criteria for veterans injured by toxic exposure; adds over 20 new presumptive conditions; and requires the VA to offer a toxic exposure screening to each veteran enrolled in the system.

Under this new law, Fayetteville veterans struggling with diseases caused by toxic exposure on military bases can file for VA disability compensation and receive free healthcare with considerably more ease than in the past.

The Camp Lejeune Justice Act is also part of the Honoring Our PACT Act, under which everyone who spent time at the military base when the drinking water was contaminated can obtain compensation from the U.S. government.

To learn more about the Honoring Our PACT Act visit https://www.va.gov/

Editor’s note: Jonathan Sharp is Chief Financial Officer at Environmental Litigation Group, P.C. The law firm offers assistance to veterans and family members injured by toxic exposure on military installations.