BRUNSWICK, Maine – Forever chemicals have now been found in the Androscoggin River.
A nonprofit group, Friends of Merrymeeting Bay, took water samples around the area after a massive spill of toxic firefighting foam last month at the former Brunswick Naval Air Station.
Now, the results are in.
“It’s heartbreaking,” one volunteer said.
The organization collected samples right by a sewer treatment plant discharge pipe.
“The contamination from the outfall pipe was very high, the highest we’ve ever seen it,” Friends of Merrymeeting Bay Chair Ed Friedman said.
Test results show the total concentration of all the PFAS in the sample was 16,000 parts per trillion. Currently, Maine allows 20 parts per trillion of PFAS chemicals in drinking or well water
“The highest we’ve ever gotten from the outfall pipe before has been like two or three hundred parts per trillion,” Friedman said.
The testing happened three days after the AFFF spill at Hangar 4 last month, when officials say the foam loaded with PFAS got into the sewer system, reaching the treatment plant within a couple of hours.
“It’s not possible to treat wastewater because of the amount of solids in it through a filter,” Brunswick Sewer District General Manager Robert Pontau said. “So that’s really not an option for us at this time.”
The Department of Environmental Protection has also been monitoring the discharge.
A spokesperson says preliminary data shows a declining trend in PFAS levels.
CBS13 has requested the results.
“There will be residual for quite some time where it either sticks to the pipes or sticks to the pump station,” Pontau said.
Pontau says they’re doing what they can while understanding the problem started elsewhere.
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“We really need to stop it at the source,” Pontau said. “We need to stop using these products. Get it out of the system all together.”
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