Please help us pay for our travel expenses this summer

Several thousand people regularly read my articles, while my work has been picked up by mainstream media worldwide. I’m hoping people will see value in this work and will consider donating to help us pay for our upcoming tours of Japan, Ireland, and Germany.

The image above was captured by a Japanese film crew that visited my home in Maryland two hours south of Washington. The Navy base across the creek used PFAS in firefighting foams during routine practice for 25 years. As a result, the water, sediment, seafood, and the air are toxic, perhaps forever. I’ve clearly documented poisonous crabs, oysters, and fish, but few around here want to hear about it.

It's deeply ironic to me. My family has lived along the banks of the Potomac River and feasted on the seafood for eight generations, but I can’t eat it.  When I first reported that the water was severely contaminated, the top official for Maryland’s Department of the Environment questioned the results and suggested that if there was any contamination in the water, it probably came from a local fire station or landfill. The closest fire station is 5 miles away while the landfill is 11 miles away. The state is covering for the Navy. The carcinogenic foam is a foot high today.

The state tested fish in a creek nearby that drains Joint Base Andrews and reported 94,200 parts per trillion of PFOS in its filet while they say it’s OK to eat.  I tested the municipal drinking water nearby and found a total of 2 ppt for 55 PFAS compounds. Almost all of the media coverage is on the drinking water.

The test results of the foam pictured above totaled 6,500 ppt for 23 different toxic compounds. The local media, the Washington Post, and DC’s television stations were unimpressed, but the Japanese had seen similar results in waters near US Navy bases, so they dropped by and captured the story. It is so terribly frustrating. The military is the 800-pound gorilla, and it doesn’t want the story out there.

Last summer I toured Japan and addressed audiences in 16 cities. I told them the U.S. Military (and Japanese industry) were poisoning their water and their fish. We tested the waters and reported the toxins, and we reported existing fish testing results showing the poisons in their fish. The media throughout Japan was eager to report the story.

As a result of our work, there is increased awareness throughout Japan. Cities and prefectures are taking measures to test for the chemicals in a host of media and they’re testing human blood serum near U.S. military bases. They’re increasingly filtering the toxins from wastewater dumped into the sea. The Japanese scientific community is springing into action. Japan provides real hope to solve this scourge upon humanity.

The influence of the military and chemical industry in Congress and state houses across America largely preclude this from happening here. 

This year I will be accompanied by chief organizer and interpreter, Rachel Clark, along with retired Army Colonel and diplomat Ann Wright, who will address the geopolitical situation of east Asia. Audiences are eager to hear Col. Wright while their government undertakes an aggressive program of militarization to counter the perceived threat from China.

Can you help us?

We’ve already shipped 40 PFAS test kits to activists in various parts of Japan. We will ship another 20 kits to activists in Germany and Ireland. That’s 60 kits at $70 each.  A major supporter of the Veterans for Peace Japan Speaking Tour, a foundation in California, is unable to support us this year while the price of the Japan Rail Pass was raised by a whopping 80%. 

Of course, I am grateful to the Downs Law Group for their ongoing support and I am deeply appreciative of Veterans for Peace for their financial support. We must raise $1,500 for remaining expenses in Europe and $17,500 for shipping to the U.S. of sample kits, transportation, and hotels in Japan.

Please help us!  Make a note that your contribution is for testing waters in Japan and Europe. 

Thank you - from the bottom of my - retirement account. - Pat Elder