Residents in Chillicothe have expressed concerns about elevated levels of some “forever chemicals” from the one of the town’s water supply wells.
Recent testing of the Chillicothe Community Water System detected concentrations of two PFAS compounds that significantly exceeded the potable groundwater quality standards.
The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency requires the town to provide water customers with a right-to-know notice. A website link to the notice was included in the most recent water bills.
“Since 2020, Illinois EPA has been proactive in identifying the prevalence of PFAS in drinking water, including supporting adoption of new groundwater standards and state drinking water standards for PFAS chemicals,” Illinois EPA Director James Jennings said in a news release.
“This notification is both required by state law and is intended to encourage everyone to be proactive in reducing exposure to PFAS compounds given their ubiquitous presence in the environment.”
Several residents brought their concerns about the contamination and the manner of the notification to the attention of Public Works Superintendent Shawn Sutherland at this week’s department committee meeting.
Sutherland indicated there's nothing in the notice that says the drinking water is unsafe, and that use of a filtration system is recommended. Multiple attempts by WCBU to contact Sutherland for additional comments were unsuccessful.
The Illinois EPA samples, collected as part of an initial monitoring period after the state’s January adoption of maximum PFAS contamination levels, identified perfluorooctanesulfonic acid [PFOS] at 33 parts per trillion [ppt], and perfluorohexanesulfonic acid [PFHxS] at 40 ppt.
The groundwater quality standards are 4 ppt for PFOS and 10 ppt for PFHxS. The updated drinking water regulations in Illinois, which are identical to the maximum levels set by the U.S. EPA, also require community water systems to meet those levels by April 2029.
