ammonium perfluorooctanoate - C8 Water Contaminations

[Rich2001]

Testing of public and private water wells in Wood, Wirt, and Mason Couties WV and in Washington, Athens and Meigs counties in Ohio show some contamination due to ammonium perfluoractanoate (C-8). Because this is a situation involving multiple states, and multiple counties many different agencies are involved. Emotions are high and lawyers are getting involved so it may get nasty.

As a practicing engineer I have been asked by several residents my opinion, so far I have told them "I don't have enough information to make a good opinion."

Do you think that this is another "LOVE CANAL" as one resident told me?

How do you think I should handle these questions?

Additional information:

http://www.mariettaonline.com/news/article.php?ID=320

http://www.c-8inform.com/

http://www.sundaygazettemail.com/news/News/200203174/

 

[DeltaCascade]

Without reading your references:

If i remember correctly, Love Canal actually caught fire!

Looks like you are on the right track .. this is a multi-disciplined problem ... engineers are the ones to prevent it or remediate it. Comparing it to legislated values and describing the % difference would be about all I would be comfortable with as a chemical engineer. Talking about the chemical's proerties may even cause problems, as it gets complicated (affect on humans are different than on fish, in the food chain, etc, also, threshold concentrations below which affects may be minimal, etc).

Health officials may be the best ones to describe the public risk or damage and environmental specialists the environmental risk or damage. Obviously , this gets quite political.

In a twisted way, Love Canal was good in that it directed resources to the engineering profession, through legislation, etc, to do the job right and avoid, or clean-up, such problems.

Best wishes!

 

[phoward]

Your project is not a Love Canal scenario at all. At Love Canal the leaching chemicals affected homes with basements within only several blocks area near the source.

When the truth of Love Canal came to light, the government, AKA the local school board, was the culprit. Hooker Chemical did all the latest toxic chemical containment, and more, in a proper clay lined, former canal. Their containment techniques of the 1950's are still valid and authorized by the EPA today. They enclosed it with clay and grew gras on the top to beautify. The local school board took the property by eminent domain over Hooker's strong objections, as a park. The problems started only when the school board dug a foundation for a school, again over Hooker's strong objections. Chemical engineers had done it right to start with, it was politics that messed it up.

What is ammonium perfluoractanoate? I can not find it as a chemical anywhere.

Is it ammonium "perfluorooctanoate", CAS Number: 3825-26-1? If so, the 8 hour exposure limit is TWA: - ppm 0.1 mg/m3 in Australia and TWA: - ppm 0.01 mg/m3 in Michigan. It is recognized as an air pollutant, per state of Washington, WAC 173-460-160, Class B toxic air pollutants.

I reviewed the web sites you named and found them to be very infromative. DuPont has the safest employees of any chemical company and better than 99% of all companies in the world by a factor of 100. DuPont's environmental policies match that concern for the community as well.

Tell them this is far from a Love Canal fisasco by the government. The 50 year history is most important as a background. There are some things that the plant might need to do to stop additional or increasing spreading of the chemical, but based on the best analysis by the EPA and DuPont, the mass health deteriation of Love Canal is not even close in your situation.

It does bear constant watching and diligence by all persons for changes, trends, etc. From what I read so far, DuPont is responding as a good neighbor should, and also is being proactive to control.

Your current response is certainly accurate and responsible for neither passing on wrong information, nor downplaying it, nor inflaming the situation. I would tell them to go to the websites you named, and stay in touch with the agencies involved, go to the meetings, register with the agencies as a concerned citizen, etc.

Good luck and be careful with mob histeria based on false rumors. Just like the false suburan myths you get on the eamil - check out the sources, to the details!

 

I live near DuPont Chemical Corporation in Washington WV. They do not care about this area. "Good neighbor" policies are editorial features and websites that the company has released in the area that are equivalent to propaganda at best. The people of this area are naive and choose to be in denial about the long-time pollution that has occurred. DuPont supplies most of the good paying jobs in this area and most people here feel that the company has been good to them. The people choose to be stupid. I grew up here and moved away for 21 years. I moved back here 3 years ago and am literally dieing to get out. Until you live next door to DuPont, don't assume that they are good neighbors. (Yes, emotions do run high when you are being poisoned)Lubeck Water and DuPont have still not warned the customers of Lubeck Water to not drink the water. That would probably mean an admission of guilt. In the meantime, God help us all.

 

[DeltaCascade]

Good discussion, Rich2001

Teflon Hillbilly, I hope you did not miss phoward's excellent points and advice.
Tx phoward!