Update – Water Contamination In Eastern Montgomery County

A meeting was held last night by the Pennsylvania Department of Health at the Upper Dublin High School.

Though not directly within our service area, this news is of concern to many in the region since it revolves around the safety of the water that was used for drinking, household, and other purposes by people living in the areas near the former Willow Grove Naval Air Station and other nearby military facilities.

At the meeting, the Pennsylvania Department of Health released results of the pilot blood testing study of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).  This is the study that is being done to determine the potential level of concern for residents in the Horsham, Warminster, and Warrington areas.

You can view details about this situation by reviewing the following documents:

PFAS Exposure Assessment Technical Tools (PEATT) Pilot Project Report

PFAS Exposure Assessment Technical Tools (PEATT) Pilot Project Presentation

“The purpose of the pilot study, funded by the federal government, was to evaluate the steps in the PFAS Exposure Assessment Technical Tools (PEATT) Pilot Project and provide feedback to Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR),” according to a statement from the Pennsylvania Department of Health.  “In addition, the results will help determine the prevalence of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in residents living in communities exposed to these toxic substances in their drinking water.”

“Over the course of the past year, the department has conducted blood level testing for members of randomly chosen households in the Warrington, Warminster and Horsham areas,” the statement continued.  “These individuals have agreed to the testing and visited a clinic to have a blood sample drawn.”

“PFAS substances were commonly used in applications that include surface coating of paper and cardboard packaging products, carpets, non-stick pans, and textiles, as well as firefighting foams,” according to the statement from the Pennsylvania Department of Health.  “These substances have been detected in air, water, and soil in and around production/ manufacturing facilities, and airports and military bases that used firefighting foams.  Companies began phasing out the production and use of several PFAS substances in the early 2000s, and two of the most well studied—perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS)—are no longer manufactured or imported into the United States.”

 

The documents are provided courtesy of the Pennsylvania Department of Health, 2018.