Recent test results have revealed the city of Menominee, Michigan wastewater shows low levels of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), but no detectable levels in its drinking water.
“We’re required to test the drinking water once a year. We’ve been testing it every month. It’s non-detectable” for PFAS, said Mike Thorsen, project manager at Infrastructure Alternatives Inc., which manages the city’s water and wastewater operations, reported The EagleHerald.
Menominee’s drinking water is sourced from Lake Michigan’s Green Bay.
According to The EagleHerald, the wastewater treatment plant is on the Menominee River, where PFAS was detected in soil and soil borings.
According to April samples, the wastewater effluent contained 8.9 parts per trillion (ppt) of PFOS and 25 ppt of PFOA in April.
January saw 3.8 ppt for PFOS and 43 for PFOA , 7.1 for PFOS and 26 for PFOA in February and 7.2 ppt for PFOS and 39 ppt for PFOA in March, according to a Eurofins Michigan report for Infrastructure Alternatives, reported The EagleHerald.
Michigan’s water quality standards are 12 ppt PFOS and 12,000 ppt for PFOA.
According to Thorsen, the low levels of PFAS are not a health issue, as “they’ve been in wastewater for years,” reported The EagleHerald.
According to Thorsen, the chemicals’ “staying power” will likely create issues if concentration levels increase.
“It’s being put in the same spot. It’s not going away,” Thorsen said, reported The EagleHerald, additionally noting that incineration would create air pollution issues.
The EagleHerald has also reported that Resolute Forest Products is cooperating with a Michigan investigation of PFAS in a landfill of its subsidiary where perfluorooctanoic acid was detected at 150 times cleanup criteria. This occurred from 1996 to 2016.
