Congress has given the Department of Defense until October 1 to stop using aqueous firefighting foam to fight fires. This deadline has been extended to October 1, 2025. (Mackenzie Richardson/US Air Force)

YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan — The U.S. military has destroyed its last reserves of toxic firefighting foam at facilities in Japan, according to the Tokyo-based command.

Aqueous firefighting foam stored at Yokota and two Okinawa facilities was incinerated at authorized disposal facilities in Japan, U.S. Forces Japan said in a statement Thursday.

In the National Defense Authorization Act of 2020, Congress gave the Department of Defense an Oct. 1 deadline to stop using foam to fight fires. This deadline has been extended until October 1, 2025, according to the USFJ press release published on its website.

“US facilities in Japan have met the deadline for replacement of the old (aqueous fire extinguishing foam),” the statement said.

The foam contains PFAS, a class of chemicals linked to an increased risk of certain liver, testicular, breast and pancreatic tumors, according to the American Cancer Society. The Environmental Protection Agency has stated that no level of PFAS is safe in drinking water.

PFAS and its components, PFOS and PFOA, are also found in a wide variety of consumer products, including nonstick cookware and stain-resistant clothing and fabrics.

Synthetic compounds, sometimes called “forever chemicals,” build up in the body over time, according to the EPA.

The United States disposed of remaining foam, no longer used to fight fires, at Yokota, an air transportation hub and USFJ headquarters west of Tokyo; and in Okinawa, at Kadena Air Base and at an Army petroleum, oil and lubricant depot, according to USFJ.

The Army depot will be converted to water-based fire suppression systems, according to the release.

The military replaced toxic firefighting foam with a new formulation that does not contain PFOS or PFOA as a raw material.

U.S. facilities are in the process of acquiring fluorine-free foam, or F3, which contains no PFAS compounds, according to the USFJ.

“US installations will upgrade to the new F3 or convert remaining fire systems to water suppression systems by the deadline,” the command statement said.

Japanese military installations, including those based with U.S. forces, have eliminated all firefighting foams containing PFOS, the USFJ statement said. These facilities include Naval Air Facility Atsugi, Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, and Misawa Air Base.

“It is the U.S. Government’s understanding that these firefighting foams have been replaced with products confirmed by manufacturers to not contain PFOS as a raw material,” the statement said.

In recent years, Japanese municipal or prefectural authorities have complained about suspected spills or leaks of toxic foam or contaminated sewage in Misawa, Yokota, Futenma Marine Corps Air Base, Yokosuka Naval Base and the Sagamihara Army General Depot, among other sites.