Salisbury found to exceed safe 'forever chemicals' levels in drinking water by 400 percent

Three Maryland and Delaware locations, including Salisbury, have been listed as exceeding PFAS levels by over 300% in an Environmental Protection Agency study into pollution of "forever chemicals" in water systems.

PFAS, or "forever chemicals," stands for per-and polyflouroalkyl substances, which are thousands of manufactured chemicals that have been widely used in industry and consumer products since the 1950s. Health risks according to the Environmental Protection Agency include increased cholesterol levels, decreased vaccine response in children, changes in liver enzymes, increased blood pressure or pre-eclampsia in pregnant women, and small decreases in infant birth weights.

The city of Salisbury, which serves an estimated 30,343 residents, was found to exceed safe PFAS levels by 400% in three tests in 20 which were completed. The results found two pollutants in the area's water supply.

The two Delaware sites include Stage Village Mobile Home Park in Delmar, which serves an estimated 93 residents and exceeded safe PFAS levels by 323.3% with five pollutants found. The other is the Bayside Pump District in Dover, which serves 8,400 residents and exceeds safe levels by 350% and has three discovered pollutants.

“People on the frontlines of PFAS contamination have suffered for far too long. That’s why EPA is taking aggressive action as part of a whole-of-government approach to prevent these chemicals from entering the environment and to help protect concerned families from this pervasive challenge,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan at the time of the release of the national report.

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What are normal PFAS readings for drinking water?

According to the federal environmental agency, there are no enforceable national drinking water standards in the U.S. for PFAS, but the agency proposed new regulations in March noting public water systems will be required to monitor for these chemicals, notify the public and reduce PFAS contamination if levels exceed the proposed standards.

The Maryland Department of the Environment has dealt with issues of PFAS in public water as recently as in January of this year at the Naylor Mill Village Mobile Home Park, where remediation efforts got underway. According to the state:

• Samples that exceed 28 parts per trillion of the contaminants means encouraged yearly monitoring with the results to be reported to the department.

• Samples that exceed 35 parts per trillion of the contaminants means conducting semi-annual monitoring at the impacted water treatment plant and conducting yearly sampling at other points of entry.

• Finally, samples exceeding 70 parts per trillion requires issuing a Tier II Public Notification, taking the impacted water treatment plant offline, exploring treatment options or acquiring alternate water sources, and conducting quarterly monitoring.

Through organizations like the Environmental Working Group, non-profit group, the public can input their zip code and identify their water system and see what level of contamination is currently recorded.

On the federal level, the EPA announced in 2022 that it is inviting states and territories to apply for $1 billion – the first of $5 billion in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law grant funding – to address PFAS and other emerging contaminants in drinking water, specifically in small or disadvantaged communities.

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PFAS issues and Delaware drinking water

The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control stipulates "when PFAS are detected in public drinking water in Delaware at concentrations above the EPA’s health advisory limit of 70 parts per trillion, the group implements a response plan, which may include alternate sources of water and/or water treatment" in their policy overview.

The EPA works with states, localities and water suppliers to implement drinking water regulations. Drinking water supplied by public systems in Delaware is regulated by the Division of Public Health to ensure compliance with the National Primary Drinking Water Regulations.

The department also noted the State of Delaware, through the authority of the Safe Drinking Water Act, has proposed its own safety standards across the state.

Check PFAS levels in water across US with interactive map

This map shows water systems that tested at or above newly established PFAS limits since last year. It’s based on boundaries developed by SimpleLab, a water-testing company. Click on a system to see which pollutants surpassed the limits and how much the most concentrated pollutant exceeded those levels.

The issue of how pervasive "forever chemicals" are in most water systems stems back to the use of these chemicals in most areas of production.

"They have been used throughout the world in manufacturing, firefighting, and consumer products since the 1940s. PFAS do not readily break down in the environment and can accumulate in living things. They are considered 'emerging contaminants' by federal environmental and public health regulators," the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control said.

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This article originally appeared on Salisbury Daily Times: 'Forever chemicals' in Salisbury water at 400 percent above safe level