Bill Pugliano/Getty Images News/Getty Images On Sunday, the governor’s office in Michigan declared a state of emergency for water contamination.
This time, though, the state of emergency had nothing to do with lead or the now-infamous Flint water crisis.
The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality found extremely high levels of PFAS in the water systems used by city of Parchment and part of Cooper Township in Kalamazoo County.
When it announced the water contamination, the Parchment government reported that the level of PFAS in the water system was 1,410 parts-per-trillion (or ppt); MLive.com reported that the limit recommended by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is only 70 ppt.
PFAS has been used in a variety of applications, from non-stick pans to firefighting and stain resistance, according to The New Republic.
PFAS also has been found to cause liver and kidney damage, increased cholesterol, asthma, cancer, risk of thyroid disease, and risk of fertility decrease, among other ailments, according to National Ground Water Association.
Kalamazoo County had declared a state of emergency locally on Friday, and asked for a state-level declaration on Saturday, according to the governor’s office.
However, a Flint city government spokeswoman estimated that 12,000 residences still have lines in need of replacing.
"The pipe replacement work is expected to be completed by 2020.
While the state has taken more immediate actions with this smaller crisis in Kalamazoo County, it remains to be seen what the long-term effects of PFAS contamination will be on the state of Michigan.