Welcome to our August Newsletter
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It’s hard to believe that summer is already half over, it has been a hot one for sure. Whether you like the heat or try to escape it indoors it only lasts for a short time. Try to enjoy it while it lasts.
According to the U.S. Drought Portal many areas of New England (85%) are currently experiencing abnormally dry or drought conditions. During these peak times of dryness it is very important to conserve drinking water.
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In this Edition
Welcome Emma Donovan
Welcome to Our Summer Interns
PFAS Bill Signed in NH
Radon in New England
Industry News
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We care what you think! Please take our survey and lets us know how we are doing. Click the link below for the office you use most frequently.
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Please help us welcome Emma, our new Client Services Representative in our Auburn, Maine Office
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Emma Donovan:
Emma and her husband, Damien, just moved to the Lisbon area of Maine in early May from central Ohio. They have vacationed and honeymooned in Maine and just fell in love with the Pine Tree state. After years of waiting for “the right time”, they were finally able to make the move! Emma is into outdoorsy things like fishing, camping, hiking, snowboarding, and cross country skiing. She has been learning how to fly fish after a lifetime on a spinning rod and is so excited to experience a Maine winter (Yes- that’s right. She loves winter and snow). Emma is thrilled with her new position at A&L Laboratory and can’t wait to see what the future holds! She would also like to thank everyone for such a warm and wonderful welcome.
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Welcome to Our Summer Interns
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We would also like to welcome our 3 high school interns who have been working with us over the summer. We wanted them to share a little bit about each of them. Enjoy!
Amber Lyons:
I am John’s daughter, Amber Lyons. I just finished my junior year in high school and am now preparing for senior year. I have experienced many different areas of the work environment over these past few summers including making kits, observing inorganic analysts, and working in the organic lab. Personally, I love math and science, so working in the lab is fun for me! Outside of work, I am involved in many clubs such as band, the environmental club, math team, NHS, etc. This year, I will be the drum major of the band, captain of the gymnastics team, and second year captain of the math team. I cannot wait!
Abbie Cote:
My name is Abbie Cote! I am 16 years old, but will be seventeen in August, making me a high school senior this fall. I play flute in my high school band, and participate in my school's envirothon club. I am also the student representative for Merrimack's Parks and Rec committee, which is also relevant to water quality! I will be contributing mainly by logging samples and making kits for the summer.
Oliver Sites:
My name is Oliver, and I just started here at A & L on June 1st as an intern for the summer. During the school year I go to a boarding school way up in Northern Maine (Limestone), called the Maine School of Science and Mathematics. While at school, I like to participate in clubs like Key Club and Book Club, and play sports like soccer and volleyball. As the name of my school may suggest, there’s a lot of interest STEM at my school, so working here at the lab has been a great experience for me. In my short time here so far, I’ve done a lot of different stuff all over, including lab work, testing kit preparation, and receiving samples. Overall, doing actual water tests in a real lab is much more interesting than seeing how different elements effect fire in chemistry or studying the best animals for walking on snow in biology. Even after such a short time here, all I can say is that I’m grateful for all of my now coworkers for helping me in this great opportunity, and that I’m excited to see what else I can learn before the summer ends.
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If you live in southern New Hampshire, you have probably heard a lot of buzz about PFAS over the past couple years. Last June the NH Department of Environmental Services lowered the maximum contaminant levels of PFAS to be some of the strictest standards in the country. Following this, testing became part of a public water system’s compliance schedule and there was a boom in residential private well testing following town meetings regarding the issue of well contamination and the health issues that can be caused by PFAS.
In December 2019, 3M, a manufacturer of PFAS and other organizations filed a lawsuit against the state, claiming the new limits were far too strict and that proper procedures were not followed to put these new standards in place. Because of the lawsuit, the requirements for public water systems were put on hold.
On July 23, Governor Sununu signed a bill reinstating the new drinking water standards regarding PFAS. The four PFAS compounds with limits that were once set to 70 part per trillion by the EPA, will now have much lower limits of 12-18 parts per trillion. The bills also include a loan fund to help communities with remediation as well as blood testing. The loan can be paid back if the state reaches a settlement with the companies believed to be responsible for the contamination, including 3M.
Hundreds of homes have been affected by the PFAS contamination, and have since been connected to safer water systems or have had treatment installed. It is believed that many more private wells will be found to have contamination as time goes on. This bill is a step in the right direction for safe, PFAS-free drinking water in the state of New Hampshire.
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We breathe radon as a natural part of the air that we breathe every day. It naturally occurs in the Earth’s crust as an invisible gas. However in too high of concentrations, radon can cause lung cancer. In fact, every year approximately 21,000 people die due to radon-related lung cancer in the US. To put that into perspective, it is the number one cause of lung cancer if you don’t smoke, and kills more people annually then drunk driving and house fires combined.
Radon is formed when uranium breaks down. Uranium is found naturally in the rocks and soil of the earth, and over time it breaks down in a process called radioactive decay. Radioactive decay breaks uranium down into other elements, and radon is one of the elements in that process. When radon itself breaks down it releases radioactive particles called alpha particles. Alpha particles, when they are breathed in, can hit our DNA and cause damage to it. Our cells use DNA as a blueprint of sorts to create copies of themselves, so if it is damaged the duplication process can become cancerous.
Radon removal is important in New England due to the fact that elevated levels of radon can be found anywhere. Radon in your home can come from both the soil and water, and the presence of one does not indicate the other. Regardless of how high the level of radon is it can be lowered using a radon mitigation systems. If you are selling a house in Maine, you must have someone registered in the state test for it, New Hampshire does not have this requirement yet
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NEWS THROUGHOUT OUR INDUSTRY
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