Yokota Air Base
16:34 JST, 20 December 2024
TOKYO (Jiji Press) — Officials from the Japanese Defense Ministry and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government on Friday conducted an on-site inspection of the US military’s Yokota Air Base in western Tokyo over a possible leak of PFAS, potentially cancer-causing chemicals.
They are inspecting a firefighting training area where PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are believed to have been spilled, while receiving a briefing from the US side.
Local government officials had been calling for an on-site inspection since October when the US side informed Japan of the suspected leak.
The Japanese side plans to conduct water sampling at a reservoir at the base.
Japan will cooperate with the United States to take effective environmental measures inside and outside the base, Defense Minister Gen Nakatani said at a news conference.
