PFOA Contamination Response: Community Updates
Week of 06/27/2016
You are receiving this e-mail because you have requested to be updated on Vermont's PFOA response efforts, or because your well was recently sampled. Weekly updates are sent out by Friday each week. If you wish to stop receiving these updates, you may unsubscribe at any time using the link at the bottom of this e-mail. Thank you.
meetingCommunity Meeting on Wednesday, June 29 th at 5:30 PM at Bennington College
*** REMINDER *** State officials, local officials, and contracted engineers will host a public meeting to discuss preliminary engineering reports for municipal drinking water line extensions in North Bennington and Bennington. State officials will also provide updates on the blood clinics and water sampling results.  Residents of North Bennington and Bennington are encouraged to attend.  The meeting will take place on Wednesday, June 29, 2016 at 5:30 PM, at Bennington College's Center for the Advancement of Public Action (CAPA) Symposium Room. DEC staff will be available starting at 4:30 to meet with residents individually to discuss their concerns.  Click here for the press advisory for the community meeting.
HealthAdvisoryVermont Health Department Revises PFOA/PFOS Health Advisory
Revised drinking water health advisory.  The Vermont Department of Health revised its drinking water advisory to 20 parts per trillion (ppt) for the sum of PFOA and PFOS. Vermont's revised advisory is based on careful review of the recommendation and supporting documents presented in May 2016 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Vermont's advisory differs from EPA's advisory of 70 ppt, because Vermont bases its advisory on how much water a child drinks during the first year of life. The Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation will submit proposed environmental rules based on this advisory this summer.  Click here for the memo dated June 22, 2016, from the Vermont Department of Health.

BenningtonNorth Bennington & Bennington Update
Revised preliminary engineering study for North Bennington --  The REVISED preliminary engineering study for North Bennington was received on Friday, June 24, and is available hereThe revised preliminary engineering study for extending the Bennington drinking water distribution lines is available here

PFOA Sampling results 
--  DEC has received sampling results from 462 private wells in Bennington and North Bennington, of which 244 had PFOA concentrations greater than 20 ppt, 54 wells had PFOA less than 20 ppt, and 164 were "no detect." A list of the results is available here,   as well as an updated map  here .  

Point-of-entry treatment systems -- In addition, a  total of 213 point-of-entry-treatment (POET) systems have been installed to date on i mpacted homes in the area. Twenty-one more are scheduled for installation.
 
Reminder! Sign-up for well testing online -- Residences with private wells within the expanded area of interest east and southeast of the landfill, including those on Chapel Road, Furnace Brook Road, Reed Drive and Bradley Drive are encouraged to sign-up online to schedule drinking water sampling. Also, any residence located within the area of interest in Bennington or North Bennington that has not yet had a private well sample collected should also sign-up.  This includes those residences on Harwood Hill Road south of the Shaftsbury Town Line Road, Settlers Road, Spring Hill Road, Town Line Road, Rocky Lane, and East Road.

Well sampling in North Pownal to continue --  DEC would like to sample private drinking water wells located north of Cedar Hill Road, and south of North Pownal Road, Deer Hill Road, and Murphy Lane.  DEC is sending letters  to property owners in these areas to let them know they are eligible to have their drinking water tested at no cost.  If you live in this area and have not had your well sampled,  please sign-up online to arrange a sample date
or call Trish Coppolino at (802) 249-5822.

Sample results --  DEC has received results for 96 of 116 wells sampled in Pownal.  Of the 96 results, 7 wells had PFOA concentrations greater than 20 ppt, 12 wells had PFOA less than 20 ppt, and 77 were "no detect."   A list of results is available here, and a map of the sampling results is available here
 
Former General Cable Facility -- Unicorn Management Consultants has submitted a Phase I Remedial Investigation Work Plan, which is available here, along with proposed profiling locations, available here

Water filtration systems to undergo sampling before use -- The four Granular Activated Carbon (GAC) filtration systems were installed last week. This week, Unicorn Consulting will assemble the treatment system components, disinfect and flush the filters, and test the water quality processing system.
infoInformation Resources Available
For general PFOA questions and concerns:
Call 2-1-1.
Visit: Vermont DEC PFOA Response Page

For questions about potential health effects of PFOA:
Call the Vermont Department of Health toll-free at 800-439-8550.
Visit: Vermont Department Health PFOA Page

You may also reply to this e-mail with general questions.