On Monday, May 14, 2018 between 5:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. there will be an information session on Perfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) Contamination found in public/private well water supplies in northwest Greenwich earlier this year.
Representatives from the Connecticut Dept of Public Health (DPH), Connecticut Dept of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) and the Greenwich Dept of Health will answer questions and provide literature on PFAS and the results of sampling conducted by DPH and DEEP in February and April 2018.
The session will be held at the Harvest Time Assembly of God located at 1338 King Street, in Greenwich. A short presentation comprised of agency representatives is scheduled from 7:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Background Information provided by the Greenwich Dept of Health
An investigation to determine if Perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) migrated into the ground water supply for public and private wells in the northwest section of Greenwich was done by Ct Dept of Public Health (DPH), in cooperation with the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (CT DEEP) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region I.
PFAS are a class of man-made chemicals with special properties and have been widely used in a variety of products and applications including, but not limited to, non-stick cookware, upholstered furniture, clothing, food packaging and firefighting foam.
PFAS concentrations were detected in public water supply wells at 1 – 3 New King Street, New York, and in ground water monitoring wells located on the Westchester County Airport property.
As a result, DPH, DEEP and EPA conducted precautionary sampling of drinking water supplies that consisted of seven (7) public drinking water systems and eight (8) private wells in Greenwich during the month of February, 2018. All drinking water samples were analyzed for six (6) PFAS.
Perfluoroalkyl substances are not found naturally in the environment, but can be released when used or disposed of at factories, airports, fire training areas, landfills and other industrial facilities. These chemicals do not break down easily in the environment, even when they are introduced into water.
Several PFAS, Perfluorooctanic Acid (PFOA) and Perfluorooctane Sulfonate (PFOS), which are the most studied, are of special concern including Perfluorohexane Sulfonate (PFHxS), Perfluoronoanoic Acid (PFNA) and Perfluoroheptanoic Acid (PFHpA) as they are persistent in the human body and exert a variety of toxic effects. Although PFOA and PFOS are no longer manufactured in the U.S., they are still produced in other locations around the world and may be in imported consumer goods. Drinking water can also be a source of exposure where these chemicals have made their way into the water supply. Such contamination is typically localized and associated with a specific facility such as an industrial plant, oil refineries, an air field or another location where these chemicals are used.
Due to PFAS’s manufacturing history, its processing and wide use in the U.S. and abroad, human exposures to PFAS’s can occur. As a result, nearly everyone has low levels of these chemicals in their blood, which can remain in the body for years, well after the exposure has stopped.
For more information on PFAS, visit the Connecticut Department of Public Health’s website at www.ct.gov/dph and enter PFAS into the Keyword search or visit the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection webpage at www.ct.gov/deep/emergingcontaminants. The Greenwich Department of Health can be contacted at (203) 622-7836 for information regarding the meeting on May 14, 2018 at Harvest Time Assembly of God.