COLDWATER, MI (WTVB) – There is good news in regard to water supplies in the area.
Director of Environmental Health Paul Andriacchi reported to the Community Health Agency Board of Health Thursday that PFAS testing by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality in Branch, Hillsdale and St. Joseph Counties has been completed and all of the results have been received.
He said samples were taken from 60 community water systems, 22 schools, and one daycare center, and none were over the Environmental Protection Agency’s Lifetime Health Advisory level of 70 parts per trillion.
PFAS was not detected in 68 samples. Meanwhile, three samples had less than 10 parts per trillion for PFAS while another sample was in the 11-70 parts per trillion range.
The Coldwater Board of Public Utilities recently said tests on their water supply showed that the amount of PFOA and PFAS was less than 10 parts per trillion. The Village of Quincy said there was no PFAS contamination in their village water supply. Samples taken from two wells in Bronson came back negative as well.
Statewide, there were only two out of nearly 1,600 samples that were above the health limit.
According to the Michigan D.E.Q, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a large group manmade chemicals that are resistant to heat, water, and oil. PFAS have been classified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as an emerging contaminant on the national landscape.
For decades, they have been used in many industrial applications and consumer products such as carpeting, waterproof clothing, upholstery, food paper wrappings, personal care products, fire-fighting foams, and metal plating. They are still used today.
PFAS have been found at low levels both in the environment and in blood samples of the general U.S. population.
