1991: Coode Island Fire (Victoria) – PFOS

1991: Coode Island (Victoria) – PFOS

At Coode Island in Melbourne in 1991 about 200 tonnes of firefighting foam concentrate were used [78] on a dock-side hydrocarbon chemical storage facility fire and most of the firewater was released to the adjacent waterway. The foam used was probably 3M Light Water AFFF. Based on the two most likely formulations the release of fluorinated organic compounds is likely to have been very substantial at between 3 tonnes and 15 tonnes (Table 2.9.1 A).
This represents a release during the Coode Island fire of up to about 30,000 kilograms of fluorinated organic compounds about a third of which was PFOS [15]. The potential for significant effects on the environment, health of responders and the public from the perspective of the foam chemicals released was not recognised at the time and was not investigated.

Managing Firefighting Foam Policy Explanatory Notes Department of Heritage Commission Queensland 2014