DE | Grafenwöhr Training Area
https://www.openstreetbrowser.org/#map=11/49.6863/11.8189&categories=military https://earth.google.com/web/search/49.70+11.90
Wikiped
ia EN: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grafenwoehr_Training_Area
DE:– https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truppen%C3%BCbungsplatz_Grafenw%C3%B6hr
Additional BSR entry (2): Grafenwoehr, South Camp Vilseck (Army Airfield)
Environmental issues:
Army poisons lake in Bavara and won’t say how bad it is – and neither will Bavarian officials. That’s because the SOFA agreement strips Germany of its sovereignty in these matters. „When asked to provide copies of the report detailing the PFAS levels detected in the five Grafenwoehr bodies of water, Bartsch referred the questions to Bavarian government officials, who also declined to provide the information.“
Excerpts from report: https://www.stripes.com/branches/army/2026-06-25/toxic-chemical-pollution-fish-bavaria-22075308.html (25 June 26)
U.S. Army Garrison Bavaria suspended fishing in five lakes and streams in the Grafenwoehr Training Area earlier this month after elevated levels of PFAS were discovered in the samples. Anglers were advised not to consume any fish caught in the affected bodies of water: Little Mike Lake, Rod and Gun Lakes 1 and 2, Thumbach Stream and Schaumbach Stream. […]
The samples were taken in November 2024 and sent to a contracted lab for analysis, base spokeswoman Susanne Bartsch said Monday. The analysis and evaluation took one year, she said. It was not clear why several months apparently passed between completion of the testing process and the public advisory. Bartsch did not answer questions about the timing. Fishing in Germany is for consumption only, since catch-and-release practices are prohibited under German fishing regulations. Drinking water on and around the installation remains safe and is monitored by U.S. and German environmental officials, the garrison said. Home to the largest Army training area in Europe, the garrison has historically conducted firefighting training at various locations within the training area and commonly used foams containing PFAS “in line with standard practices at the time,” Bartsch said. […]
The base stopped using firefighting foam containing the chemicals in 2024, she added. Dubbed “forever chemicals” because they accumulate in the body over time, PFAS have long been a thorny issue for the U.S. military around the world. They were an ingredient in aviation firefighting foams used to combat fuel fires on military bases starting in the 1970s, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs website. The foams became a “major source” of groundwater contamination, it added. […]