Contributed by Rensselaer County
An eighth round of sampling of properties in Poestenkill for PFOA has been concluded, with one new property found to have above State-permitted levels, County officials announced on Tuesday.
Twelve properties were sampled during the eighth round of testing. Samples were taken from Weatherwax Road and locations that had been previously offered sampling from around the area of the middle school.
Of the twelve samples, six showed non-detections and five showed detections of PFOA/PFOS below the State maximum contaminant level standards for public drinking water, along with the one over the MCL.
With the conclusion of the eighth round of testing, a source for the contamination has still not been discovered. The County and State have been investigating the possibility of multiple, unrelated sources for the contamination. The State has conducted expanded testing in the area around the middle school.
The Town is also continuing work to develop a public water district in Poestenkill to cover areas affected by the PFOA situation.
“Following eight rounds of testing, still no source of the contamination has been determined. We are continuing to work with the State to find the source or sources for the PFOA contamination and to get more answers,” said County Public Health Director Mary Fran Wachunas.
• Testing started after PFOA/PFOS was discovered during State-mandated testing for PFOA/PFOS at Algonquin Middle School early last year.
• The County has to date collected samples for 89 private wells, with 14 wells tested at or above the drinking water standard of 10 ppt for either PFOA/PFOS.
• The 14 wells that have been found to have detections of PFOA and/or PFOS above half of the drinking water standards will likely be resampled at some time in the future.
• No source for the contamination has been determined during the eight rounds of testing.
• The lack of a source has restricted the ability for widespread testing.
“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.