Gov. Shumlin Announces Positive Developments This Week |
Gov. Peter Shumlin announced several positive developments this week, including:
Read the full press releases here Monday and Tuesday here: |
Share Your Drinking Water Results With Us |
If you live outside one of the areas of concern in Bennington, North Bennington, Shaftsbury, or Pownal, and have had your well tested for PFOA in the last two months, consider sharing your analytical report with Department of Environmental Conservation staff. Sharing your results can aid the Department in building a data set that will be used to determine the extent and source of the PFOA release.
Attach your results to an e-mail and send to the one of the following contacts based on where you live: |
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New set of webpages for Vermont PFOA information |
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North Bennington Update |
Reminder: Register for Blood Draw Clinics by April 30! — Blood test clinics will be held April 29 through mid-May. You are eligible for the clinics, if:
To begin the registration process, complete the online survey by April 30.
PFOA Blood Draw Clinic for College Students — The Health Department is offering a special PFOA blood draw clinic for students from eligible households who have been away at college. The clinic will be held at the Health Department district office in Bennington on the morning of Tuesday, May 24. To register your student for this clinic, call the Health Department at 800-439-8550.
Advice for gardeners — Based upon the preliminary soil results showing very low concentrations of PFOA in soils, the Agency of Agriculture does not anticipate significant uptake of PFOA into plants and vegetables from garden soils. Gardeners are encouraged to proceed with their plantings and follow two recommendations: 1) Use water containing less than 20 ppt PFOA in your garden and 2) Add clean compost to amend garden soils. Bottled water pick-up at new location — Residents within expanded areas of concern can now pick up bottled water from D’s Market & Deli at 1404 East Road in Bennington. Citizen’s Advisory Group — DEC has initiated the possible forming of a Citizen’s Advisory Group to advance citizen’s concerns directly with Saint-Gobain. The make-up is yet to be determined but would include delegate representatives from citizens, representatives from Saint-Gobain, and could include technical assistance from the Toxics Action Center and DEC. If you are interested in participating in the formation of this group, please contact Shaina Kasper (Toxics Action Center) at (802) 223-4099.
Sample count to-date — More than 300 private drinking water wells in the areas of concern in Bennington and North Bennington have been sampled to date. Results have been received for 232 wells in North Bennington, with 126 containing PFOA above the 20ppt health advisory limit. An additional 64 samples were collected last week from expanded areas of concern near Old Bennington and south of the Old Bennington Landfill. Drinking water sampling nearby old Bennington Landfill — Private wells continue to be sampled around the closed landfill, mostly in suspect areas in down gradient direction from the landfill. Sampling will continue over the next couple of weeks. If you live in this area (just east of Route 7, north of Routh 279, and west of East Road), sign-up to have your well tested.
Reminder! Sign-up for well testing online if within expanded area of concern — View the updated area of interest map. If you have a private well and live within the outlined areas of concern, and have not had your well sampled yet, register now using this online form. |
Bennington Update |
Impacted home in Bennington now connected to municipal water — One home that tested positive for PFOA contamination in their well on Northside Drive has officially been connected to the Bennington municipal water supply. This solution may be considered for other nearby homes, pending the outcome of test results this week. |
Pownal Update |
More sampling to occur in Pownal — Additional sampling will be occurring at private drinking wells in the following areas.
1. East of the old Pownal Tannery site along Route 346. There are a few homes clustered in this area. 2. North of Church Street in the main village. This was announced at the community meeting on Tuesday, April 19th. If you have a private well and live in one of these areas, sign-up to have your well sampled using the sign-up reminder info below. Do you know someone that worked at General Cable? — The Department is interested in speaking directly with former employees at the General Cable facilities in Pownal to collect more details about processes used at the plant. If you or someone you know worked at the plant, please have them contact Trish Coppolino at patricia.coppolino@vermont.gov. |
Information Resources Available |
For general PFOA questions and concerns: Call 2-1-1. Visit: Vermont DEC PFOA Response Page For questions about potential health effects of PFOA: Call the Vermont Department of Health toll-free at 800-439-8550. Visit: Vermont Department Health PFOA Page You may also reply to this e-mail with general questions. |