U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Koby I. Saunders
South Dakota
Mines hosted a roundtable discussion and technical information session on Per-and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) at the
Black Hills
Defense & Industry Symposium on March 14-16 at The Monument in Rapid City.
PFAS are a diverse group of human-made chemicals
used in a wide range of consumer and industrial products. They are long-lasting
chemicals in the environment that
can cause harm to human health. The chemicals have been commonly used in fire
retardant, textile manufacturing, grease-resistant paper for food packaging,
stain and water repellents and non-stick cookware. Military installations
commonly used aqueous film-forming foams containing PFAS for training and
emergency response. PFAS contamination is a concern nationwide.
- Mines hosted a roundtable discussion on PFAS
innovation on March 14. The discussion included experts from
academia, government and industry.
- Mines President Dr. Jim Rankin was among the
featured speakers during the general symposium session on March 15. President
Rankin spoke on the wide range of research topics at Mines in support of
Ellsworth Air Force Base and across the Department of Defense.
- Mines hosted a technical information session
on PFAS on March 16. This session included technical research
presentations by leading scientists on PFAS from academia, government, and
industry.
- Mines Provost Dr. Lance Roberts was a featured
panelist on March 16 on the topic of Building the Future of
Defense Tech in the Black Hills.
You can find general information on the Black Hills
Defense & Industry Symposium on the event website
here. The symposium was hosted by the Black Hills Military Advisory Coalition.