Brunswick Town Council called for action from the Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority and the Maine Department of Environmental Protection, adopting an unprecedented resolution Tuesday night.

Just days after MRRA came under fire in a special public meeting, the Brunswick Town Council voted unanimously to call on MRRA and the Maine DEP to take several steps, including moves to safeguard human health and the environment as well as accountability measures, such as taking a statewide inventory of the toxic firefighting foam known as AFFF that was spilled on Aug. 19.

Council Chairperson Abby King said that the resolution, primarily authored by At-Large Councilor James Ecker, is a means to call on the state “to take comprehensive and immediate action” to address public safety concerns and safeguard residents. She also said that this resolution marks the first time the town has proposed actions related to PFAS.

“We are and will continue to work very closely with Rep. [Dan] Ankeles and Sen. [Mattie] Daughtry to get the actions outlined in the resolution brought to fruition through the appropriate state and federal channels,” King said.

Ecker described the resolution as non-binding to MRRA or DEP but said it serves as an opportunity for the community to be heard on a legislative level.

“This resolution before you is a call to action,” Ecker said, adding that the resolution aims to address the source of the problem, make information transparent and improve emergency response planning. ” … If there’s ever a time to ask the state or powers that be, this is the time.”

The resolution underwent a grueling series of revisions prior to the vote, including adding language to set timeframes for MRRA and the DEP to act. After hours of discussion, the council passed the measure.

MRRA Executive Director Kristine Logan said during the meeting that the quasi-state entity would cooperate with the resolution, despite it being non-binding.

“You’re not going to get pushback from MRRA,” she said.

She cautioned that severe measures, such as shutting down all hangars with an AFFF system would effectively shut down Brunswick Executive Airport. She also said the cost just to overhaul the Hangar 4 system could be almost $10 million. She also said that such a change could impact tenants at the landing, as defueling planes before storage in hangars would cost companies.

District 5 Councilor Jennifer Hicks pushed back against this, stating she wants the entities involved in the spill to do the right thing.

“Human health and safety is the bottom line,” Hicks said.

What is NFPA 409?

Included in the resolution was a request for a written determination from the State Fire Marshal’s Office to clarify what fire suppression codes apply to the airport, touching on debates over the standards that MRRA said forced it to continue using a Navy fire suppression system that relied on a toxic foam.

At the center of this debate is National Fire Protection Association 409, a fire safety standard designated for aircraft hangars. The NFPA is a nonprofit dedicated to addressing fire safety hazards. The state abides by the 2011 version of NFPA 409, according to the Office of State Fire Marshal website (the most recent version of this standard was published in 2022).

Brunswick Deputy Fire Chief Josh Shean said that while he is unsure when the 2011 version of the standard was adopted, there is typically a two-year review and adoption period for new standards. He said that the conversation about alternatives to the fire suppression systems started with the former deputy chief — before Shean was promoted in May 2024 — and was driven by MRRA.

In NFPA code, Hangars 4, 5 and 6 are classified as Group I, Shean said. Under the 2011 standard, Class I hangars storing and servicing aircraft must use a foaming system for fire protection. Aircrafts that are defueled can either use a foaming system or automatic sprinkler protection.

MRRA has previously suggested a temporary fix that entails defueling aircraft before storing them inside the hangar until a different system for fire protection can be used. Shean also noted that a foaming suppression system does not automatically imply that AFFF with PFAS must be used. One alternative is fluorine-free foam, also known as F3.

Shean said that switching to an alternative foam is not always an easy process — foam concentrate cannot simply be switched out of storage tanks, and any alternative foams may require a total system overhaul.

“There can often be more than one way to achieve compliance when a property owner is trying to find a solution for a code issue,” Shean said. “The role of the Brunswick Fire Department and municipal code enforcement is to interpret the code and determine if the plan of corrective action meets the intent of the code to achieve compliance.”

The 2022 NFPA 409 standard, however, does allow for other fire suppression systems in Class I hangars. Shean pointed to NFPA 409 – 2022, 8.2.13, allowing for an Ignitable Liquid Drainage Floor Assembly, which diminishes the presence of flammable fluid in the hangar in case of a fire. Such a system, he said, would require engineering and approval by the fire department and Office of State Fire Marshal.

The office could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

Ongoing cleanup

The council move came hours after the DEP announced that it was expanding its sampling plan from daily water sampling.

“Overall, the amount of foam observed and collected continues to gradually drop to reduced amounts that are easily contained and removed,” the DEP wrote.

It added that it will supplement the daily testing with samples of soil near Hangar 4 and the park across the street this week as well as fish tissue from Merriconeag Stream, Mare Brook and the Androscoggin River.

The DEP reiterated that well sampling will commence with select property owners near Coombs Road to Gurnet Road about a quarter mile past the intersection with Hawkins Lane.

It also clarified that private well owners who might be eligible for PFAS testing reimbursement would fall within this region, though it stated that reimbursement funding was limited.

Surface water test results included in the results showed a decrease in PFOS — a type of PFAS — levels in surface water sampling between Aug. 18 and 22. The data showed that the Aug. 22 PFOS levels were 197,000 nanograms per liter, which the department said is the same as parts per trillion. General PFAS levels came back as over 255,000 nanograms per liter.

During Tuesday’s meeting, Logan, the MRRA’s executive director, also provided updates on the cleanup process at the former Naval Air Base.

She said that the Unified Command — an entity formed the day after the spill comprised of MRRA, DEP, the Town of Brunswick and others — had been meeting daily for the past two weeks and will now switch to twice a week, as there was “less to discuss.” She said DEP is still issuing updates every other day.

She also noted that decontamination of Hangar 4 is now complete. She said that the Navy will come to remove the remaining AFFF from Hangar 4 prior to Oct. 1. She said that Hangar 6, another spot of contention on the base, will not be included in this removal effort.

For questions, resources and updates on the cleanup process, visit brunswickme.gov/761/Brunswick-Executive-Airport-Firefighting. Report the presence of foam by calling 844-8040.