The #EagleRiver Water & Sanitation District and Upper Eagle Regional Water Authority decline to participate in another #PFAS settlement — The #Vail Daily

Eagle River Basin

Click the link to read the article on the Vail Daily website (Zoe Goldstein). Here’s an excerpt:

July 28, 2024

Little is known about the full impact of so-called ‘forever chemicals,’ and settlement would prevent participants from suing in the future

In the fall, the district and authority declined to participate in two PFAS-related settlements. Last month, district staff received information about a new settlement the district and authority could elect to participate in, with similar terms to those in the fall, and lower compensation. During their regular meetings on Thursday, July 25, the district and authority boards reviewed and declined the new settlement proposal, and authorized district staff to make decisions about similar settlements going forward…

The district and authority have conducted three studies to sample the water they provide for PFAS over the last five years. Data from the most recent study, conducted in 2023, shows that PFAS have been detected in five out of 11 of the two water providers’ sources, with four detections within the authority, and one in the district. All five detections were below the maximum contaminant level of four parts per trillion. For reference, one part per trillion is the equivalent of one drop of water in 20 Olympic-sized swimming pools…

Part of the challenge of sampling for PFAS is that technology has not caught up to the chemicals — though there are thousands of PFAS chemicals, only 29 can currently be detected. At the moment, not all labs in the United States can test for PFAS, and the testing is very expensive. The district and authority will next sample for PFAS in 2025.

One thought on “The #EagleRiver Water & Sanitation District and Upper Eagle Regional Water Authority decline to participate in another #PFAS settlement — The #Vail Daily

Leave a Reply