Mejia: “… as a mother, I still
have concerns”
NEWBURGH – City Manager Michael Ciaravino lifted the state of emergency in Newburgh now that the city’s drinking water supply has been switched over to Brown’s Pond and the Catskill Aqueduct. “I now believe that our water is safe to drink while we work on the longer term issue of finding a permanent solution to the problem,” the city manager said in an announcement early Tuesday afternoon.
While the city operates under interim measures, water conservation measures announced on Monday will remain in place.
According to the State Department of Health, the city’s water supply from Washington Lake has never had PFOS contaminate levels above the recommended limits of 200 parts per trillion. The measure has been at 140 parts per trillion.
That brought a response from Councilwoman Karen Mejia.
“It is encouraging to hear that Newburgh is below the threshold of what is currently regulated, but as a parent, as a mother, I still have concerns. Anything above a zero I have a question on,” Mejia said.
There is still no mention of the source of the contamination. But, according to a fact sheet from the Environmental Protection Agency “the environmental release of PFOS-based AFFF may also occur from tank and supply line leaks, use of aircraft hangar fire suppression systems and firefighting training.” The Air National Guard Base at Stewart Airport provides the firefighting function for the civilian and military portions of the airport and is in close proximity to Washington Lake. Nothing made public has linked any activities at the guard base to the Washington Lake contamination.
State and Orange County officials are monitoring the water situation and Mayor Judy Kennedy said Tuesday that the state was investigating to determine the source.
EPA spokesman John Martin said the agency received a letter from Ciaravino on Monday. “The EPA has reached out to the city manger to get more information,” Martin said.
The EPA fact sheet, though, discusses health efforts of the chemical. “The ingestion of PFOA-contaminated water was found to cause adverse effects on mammary gland development of mice.” It also stated that, “One study indicated that exposure to PFOS can affect the neuroendocrine system in rats; however, the mechanism by which PFOS affects brain neurotransmitters is still unclear.” The EPA fact sheet also said, “The chronic exposure to PFOS and PFOA can lead to the development of tumors in the liver of rates; however, more research is needed to determine if there are similar cancer risks for humans.”
Additionally the report said, “Epidemiologic studies have shown an association between PFOS exposure and bladder cancer; however, further research and analysis are needed to understand this association.”
