ORLEANS TOWNSHIP, MI — Drinking water at an Ionia County preschool building has tested for elevated levels of contamination by per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS.
The school is on summer recess, said Dan Peterson, EightCap president.
Bottled water has begun for year-round staff.
During session, up to 18 students ages 3 to 5 and about 15 staff members use the facility, which has previously been used as a county mental health facility and an elementary school.
"Our concern is on providing notice and making sure we implement measures in addition to bottled water," said Peterson.
The contamination was discovered Aug. 3 by the state, which is testing all public water supplies and schools on well water in Michigan for PFAS contamination.
Test results show 180-ppt of PFBS and 2-ppt of PFHxA in the well, according to EightCAP.
The contamination in the school well is above the Environmental Protection Agency’s 70-ppt health advisory level, which the state has been using to evaluate the seriousness of PFAS contamination in drinking water.
Technically, the advisory only applies to the chemicals PFOS and PFOA, but state agencies have been applying the benchmark to other PFAS detections as well.
To the north, in Montcalm County, the Tri-County Schools Middle School recently announced it would provide bottled water after a well test results showed PFAS in the water at 62-ppt.