Home | Environment Union Leader Correspondent MERRIMACK — Despite a petition from more than 700 residents asking Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics to pay for water filtration systems at local schools, the company says it is not prepared to take that action.
Last month, voters adopted the school district’s budget, which includes $128,000 to install central filtration systems at the schools that would treat select faucets and water fountains.
“Testing shows that PFOA levels in the school district’s water are below the state’s 70 ppt standard set by the Environmental Protection Agency for the most sensitive populations based on a lifetime of exposure,” said Pokedoff.
“I have yet to see any action by Saint-Gobain to make up for the years they were a major contributor to the polluted drinking water the citizens and children of Merrimack innocently consumed.
It will be years before we fully understand the full extent of the adverse health ramifications in Merrimack and its surrounding communities,” said Cinda Guagliumi, a Merrimack resident and member of the local school board.
In addition, she said health advisory levels vary between states and experts, and will likely continue to be refined as more data becomes available.
Pokedoff explained that Saint-Gobain recently reached a consent decree to fund the extension of municipal water service in portions of Merrimack, Manchester, Litchfield and Bedford.
Furthermore, she said the company recently agreed to fund a granular activated carbon filtration system on two public wells operated by the Merrimack Village District.
“The Merrimack public water random blood sample conducted by the Department of Health and Human Services last year (shows) at a minimum two to three times the expected serum levels for PFOA.
“These chemicals don’t belong in drinking water and our schools should have been immediately made a chemical-free zone.” Wendy Thomas of Merrimack previously installed a $1,100 water filtration system at her home.