Water quality in Higashihiroshima City, Hiroshima Prefecture of Japan, has long been plagued by pollution of military bases of the United States in the country, which poses potential threats to the health and farming of local residents.
Since December last year, multiple water quality investigations in Higashihiroshima have revealed significant pollution in local water bodies near a U.S. military ammunition depot.
The contamination is primarily due to two highly concentrated organic fluorine compounds, PFOS and PFOA, which do not naturally exist in the environment but are synthetic chemicals commonly used in firefighting foam and other materials.
"We were required to stop using well water and only use tap water. We have abandoned growing rice this year either. The U.S. military ammunition depot is located over there. It's a large area and a small river flows from that direction. We don't know if that's the source of the pollution," said a local resident.
In the most contaminated areas, the concentration of the PFOS and PFOA reached a staggering 15,000 nanograms per liter, which is 300 times higher than Japan's provisional safety standard of 50 nanograms per liter.
"We found high concentrations of pollutants to the south and northeast of the U.S. military ammunition depot. Japan's provisional standard stands at 50 nanograms per liter. This area exceeds Japan's provisional standard by 300 times. I believe this is an extremely high concentration," said Mito Akira, an official of Higashihiroshima's Life and Environmental Department.
Experts warn that prolonged consumption of water contaminated with organic fluorine compounds may harm the immune system, liver, and kidneys, and could even lead to tumors.
The U.S. military had previously denied the use of firefighting foam containing these harmful chemicals.
However, in September this year, they reversed their stance, admitting that they had used the foam for firefighting purposes for 19 years from 1991 and had even burned large quantities of the raw foam concentrate in 2020.
The U.S. military base in Higashihiroshima has been present for nearly 80 years, but for the local population, it remains shrouded in mystery.
Despite the U.S. military acknowledging the past use of hazardous firefighting foam, local residents are demanding more transparency.
They are seeking further details on the scale of the foam usage and its potential impact on the surrounding water systems.
However, obtaining more information remains difficult as the U.S. military has yet to allow external investigations into the site.
Japan's water quality haunted by U.S. military bases
A 25 percent import tariff on all foreign-built vehicles entering the United States has raised serious concerns for manufacturers in South Africa.
Automotive giants like Mercedes and BMW have long used South Africa as a base for global exports -- but those plans may be shifting into reverse gear after the U.S. announced the punitive measures.
"If you take, for example, BMW, 97 percent of the X3 that we are producing in Rosslyn is exported out of the country. We only sell 3 percent in South Africa, and there's a huge number of those vehicles that also go into the U.S. So there are companies in South Africa that are purely here not because they are selling vehicles in South Africa; they are here to produce vehicles for the global market, and it's important for them to remain globally competitive," said Mike Mabasa, CEO of the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa.
U.S. automaker Ford, which has deep roots in South Africa, is also in the crosshairs.
The company recently invested over 300 million U.S. dollars to upgrade its Silverton plant in Pretoria, South Africa, for the production of the world's only plug-in hybrid Ranger, which has just entered production but could face delays or restrictions.
"If an American citizen wants to buy specifically a Ford Ranger that is a plug-in hybrid, they can only place an order in South Africa, nowhere else in the world. So, that means, obviously, the capacity of Ford to be able to produce those vehicles in big volumes is going to be constrained, because Americans are going be looking at another Ford that is produced in another country, or even in the United States," said Mabasa.
South Africa has long enjoyed duty-free automotive exports to the U.S. under the African Growth and Opportunity Act, but that relationship now hangs in the balance.
A sharp shift in U.S. foreign policy threatens to derail an industry that employs thousands and contributes around 5 percent to the country's economy.
"We produce less than 1 percent of global automotive vehicles, so to say. So, in reality, the impact on us is likely to be more disproportionate than those of our peers that produce at the same level. And the risk is actually created -- a concentration risk -- in countries that have greater capacity and are building more; in those countries will be able to absorb some of this," said Parks Tau, South Africa's minister of trade and industry.
Amid growing concerns about overreliance on the U.S. market, Amith Singh, national manager for manufacturing at Nedbank Commercial Bank, emphasized the importance of tapping into regional trade opportunities.
"I think we need to make better use of some of our local agreements, our African continental agreements. How do we leverage that? How do we partner with the government and private sector to start benefiting the countries and the economies aside from the United States? So, those could be the catalyst to drive our localization projects; it could be what we need to drive the African economy as opposed to being completely reliant on the States (United States)," he said.
South Africa is for now standing firm in its decision not to retaliate against steep U.S. import tariffs, set to take effect in just a few days.
Officials in Pretoria acknowledge the challenges posed by the current U.S. administration but are pursuing a diplomatic approach in hopes of maintaining stable relations and preserving the African Growth and Opportunity Act.
US tariffs rock South Africa’s auto industry
