Submitted by the Rensselaer County Department of Health
A third round of sampling of properties in Poestenkill for PFOA has been concluded, with three new properties found to have levels of PFOA above state-permitted levels, county officials announced on Friday.
The results were finalized on Tuesday afternoon and prepared for public release on Thursday. The third round of testing results was announced as testing is now underway on additional properties on a voluntary basis.
The third round of testing was conducted from sites located to the north and east of Algonquin Middle School. The ten sites registered samples that show two non-detect, five detections of PFOA/PFOS below the state maximum contaminant level standards for public drinking water, and three that registered levels above the state maximum contaminant level of 10 parts per trillion (ppt).
All property owners have been contacted prior to public release of this information and provided with information regarding their samples.
For the three homes with levels above the state MCL, the state Department of Environmental Conservation will be providing bottled water while a home treatment system is installed.
The third round of testing did not determine a source for the contamination. The county and state are currently investigating the possibility of multiple, unrelated sources for the contamination.
- Testing started after PFOA/PFOS was discovered during state-mandated testing for PFOA/PFOS at Algonquin Middle School earlier this year.
- The county has to date collected samples for 27 private wells, with seven wells tested at or above the drinking water standard of 10 ppt for either PFOA/PFOS. These seven include the three announced today. There are 24 samples now pending completion.
- No source for the contamination has been determined during the three rounds of testing.
- The lack of a source has restricted the ability for wide-spread testing.
- Town officials have been informed, along with state Department of Environmental Conservation and the state Department of Health.
“The county continues to test residences and properties on a voluntary basis, and is providing this information as quickly as possible to the public. We can report that testing has yet to reveal a source for the contamination, and we are in fact reviewing whether there are multiple sources involved in the Poestenkill situation,” said Public Health Director Mary Fran Wachunas.
“The samples show readings that are in the teens in relation to the MCL. We continue to test to determine a source and to get additional answers for residents,” added Wachunas.
“Residents should know the county continues to work cooperatively with the state and the town to provide an effective response to this issue. Residents can call our office at 518-270-2632 if they have additional questions,” added Wachunas.