Category: Resources

PFAS

Residents with contaminated water near Yakima Training Center still waiting for solutions

John Lovie

Residents with contaminated water near Yakima Training Center still waiting for solutions | Local | yakimaherald.com Brandi Hyatt, left, hands out information flyers to parade goers as the Pursue PFAS Free float rolls by in the Selah Community Days Parade Saturday, May 20, 2023, in Selah, Wash. More than a year after finding out her home’s well had high levels of toxic chemicals, Brandi Hyatt and her family in East Selah have adapted to using bottled water for everything from brushing their teeth to filling their dog’s water bowl.“As far as daily life goes, everything is worked around the bottled … Continue reading Residents with contaminated water near Yakima Training Center still waiting for solutions

PFAS, Training

PFAS Testing Results Dashboard

John Lovie

The dashboard shows data from PFAS water testing that is required under a 2021 state rule. Public water systems must test all active, permanent and seasonal sources of their water supply.

Water is tested after all water treatments are completed (such as disinfection) and before the source water is distributed to water customers. The dashboard includes results from each source tested within a water system. Continue reading PFAS Testing Results Dashboard

EPA, PFAS

CERCLA PFAS Enforcement Listening Sessions

John Lovie

Key takeaways:

EPA will focus enforcement efforts on federal facilities, including military bases, and manufacturers

EPA proposes exempting from CERCLA liability State, tribal, or municipal airports, and tribal or local fire departments, in exchange for full cooperation with investigations.

The first is good news for residents near Ault Field and OLF whose water has been contaminated by firefighting activities at these Navy facilities, and the second for others whose water may have been contaminated by non-military firefighting activities. Continue reading CERCLA PFAS Enforcement Listening Sessions

PFAS

About that Toilet Paper

John Lovie

A new study published this week was showed that toilet paper is a major contributor to PFAS in wastewater.

Rural Washington State relies heavily on septic systems for sewage treatment and on ground water wells for drinking water. In voluntary testing of public water systems in Washington State, PFAS compounds have been detected in about 10% of them. Could PFAS from our toilet paper be showing up in our drinking water? Continue reading About that Toilet Paper

DOH, EPA, PFAS

2023 EPA Proposal to Regulate PFAS in
Drinking Water

John Lovie

What did EPA announce?
On March 14, 2023, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a proposed rule for
regulating six per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in drinking water. Over the next year, the
proposed rule will undergo an extensive public review and comment process. The final regulation may
differ from the proposal.
EPA proposed maximum contamination levels (MCLs) of 4 parts per trillion (ppt) for perfluorooctane
sulfonate (PFOS) and four parts per trillion (ppt) perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA). Continue reading 2023 EPA Proposal to Regulate PFAS in
Drinking Water

PFAS, Seattle Times

Sea-Tac’s legacy of PFAS chemicals: ‘foam showers,’ sick firefighters and contaminated water

John Lovie

SEATAC — In the 1980s, rookie firefighters at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport endured a hazing ritual known as the “foam shower.”

Recruits stood some 150 feet down the tarmac with 5-gallon buckets and were told to catch firefighting foam shot out of a crash-response truck’s water cannon.

They would wear the usual helmet and heat-resistant gear, but still ended up drenched as the bubbly white liquid rained down on them. Continue reading Sea-Tac’s legacy of PFAS chemicals: ‘foam showers,’ sick firefighters and contaminated water