St. Paul Park officials have asked residents to limit their water usage after the state Health Department found excessive levels of industrial chemicals in a municipal well.
Since then, the city has blended water from two other wells to ensure that PFC levels met standards.
In March, the St. Paul Park City Council commissioned a study to explore solutions to reduce PFC levels.
The study recommended a filtration system similar to one in Cottage Grove, which was forced to shut down its contaminated wells after the state last year released new and more exacting standards on industrial chemicals in drinking water.
The filtration system could be rented by St. Paul Park and used until officials identify a permanent solution.
The funds would come from the money that the 3M Co. agreed to pay communities — up to $40 million — to help with short-term drinking water solutions, part of a remediation agreement the company approved in 2008.
Last May, the state Health Department announced it was tightening the acceptable levels of two types of toxic chemicals under the classification of PFCs.
Since the 2008 agreement with 3M, the Health Department has monitored drinking water in Washington County communities.
Last March, excessive levels of PFCs prompted Lake Elmo to shut off one of its wells and one water tower — the seventh time that wells or water towers in the Washington County suburbs had been taken offline because of PFC contamination.
"Residents of St. Paul Park shouldn’t be worried.

Fire district board members, joined by officials from the county and state health departments, as well as the Environmental Protection Agency, will be on hand Tuesday at Sugarloaf Station 2, to brief concerned area residents on the current status of water well safety in the area.
The fire protection district installed well and septic systems in 2017 at its Station 1 and Station 2 in 2017, and on April 1, sampled the water in the well at Station 1 for PFCs.
John Winchester, a volunteer firefighter for the district, wrote in an email that at Station 1 the level of PFOA there was 79 parts per trillion, and the level of PFOS was 950 parts per trillion, and combining the two yields a level 14.7 times the EPA health advisory.
Winchester wrote the Station 2 well water has been tested once, on May 10, and that the levels exceeded the EPA standards, although not as significantly as at Station 1.
"We were notified by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment on the 22nd of May, that the (Sugarloaf) fire department had tested their well water and that their well had high levels of PFC’s," said Chana Goussetis, spokeswoman for the Boulder County Public Health.
"And fortunately, we got those tests back earlier this week and only one of the wells had levels above the level of the EPA advisory, so that’s great news," Goussetis said.
Wasinger is waiting with interest to hear about testing results from the second sampling at Station 1, and for now his own well has not been tested.
"We are in great debt to our local firefighters and many of us wouldn’t even have houses standing, without them," said Wasinger, whose home was "right in the middle" of the Black Tiger Fire in 1989 and about three-quarters of a mile from the boundary of the devastating Fourmile Fire of 2010.
Source of contaminants under investigation Richardson said several state health and environment department staffers will be present at Tuesday night’s board meeting of the Sugarloaf district, to speak about the next steps in addressing the situation.
Goussetis said its initial recommendation to people in the Sugarloaf area followed the state health department guidelines, that women who were pregnant or planning to be, breast feeding or had bottle-fed infants, not use their well water, and utilize alternative sources of water for anything that absorbs water, such as soup, rice or beans.

A power outage may have led to untreated water from a nearby irrigation pond to flow into the water supply at Water World in Federal Heights from Monday to Wednesday of this week, the Tri-County Health Department announced.
The power outage required a repair of a broken water valve at the popular park, likely allowing water from the pond to get into the domestic water supply, according to the news release from the Health Department.
The untreated water may have gotten into the drinking fountains, swimming pools and was probably used to make ice, drinks and food at all the concession stands, health officials said.
John Douglas, the executive director of the Health Department, said the problem has since been fixed, so exposure was limited to Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.
The metro Denver park will be closed Thursday, postponing the unveiling of the park’s new ride, the Glacier Run, the park said in a news statement.
The park is slated to reopen Friday.

Health officials warn patrons of Water World in Federal Heights who entered the park between Monday and Wednesday may be sickened by contaminated water from an irrigation pond after a power outage and equipment failure.
Anyone who drank water from concession stands or drinking fountains or swam in pools and slides could be at risk of a sickness, according to a public notice by Gary Sky, spokesman for Tri-County Health Department.
Health department officials say drinking the untreated water could cause symptoms that include vomiting, diarrhea and fever.
“We are notifying the public out of an abundance of caution so that guests can be aware of any symptoms from ingesting untreated water,” said Dr. John Douglas, executive director of the health department.
The water park is closed Thursday but will reopen Friday.
The agency says a power outage and a broken water valve at the park likely allowed water to pour from the pond into the park’s main water supply.
Officials say Water World visitors experiencing these symptoms should contact the state Department of Public Health and their doctors.
“The problem has been corrected, so any possible exposure was limited to (Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday),” Douglas said.
He added that no one has reported getting sick.
Pathogens sometimes found in untreated water include norovirus, giardia, E. coli, cryptosporidium and hepatitis A.

Seven of the 10 most distressed water systems in the state are in Central Louisiana, according to the governor’s Rural Water Infrastructure Committee.
The committee is tasked with helping at-risk water systems to address their issues before they reach a crisis point.
Among the 10 systems on the list are the Hammock Water System in Rapides Parish; the Rogers Community Water System and Town of Tullos Water System in LaSalle Parish; the Clarence Water System and Powhatan Water System in Natchitoches Parish; the Enterprise Water System in Catahoula Parish; and the Town of Clayton Water System in Concordia Parish.
(Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) The list of 10 systems the Rural Water Infrastructure Committee came up with isn’t a list of the worst systems in the state, health officials are quick to point out, or even the ones with the most violations.
"All of our agencies have these resources," Durham said.
What can the committee do to help struggling water systems?
Parish: Rapides Population served: 900 The issues: The system has been cited several times, dating back to 2010, for levels of arsenic above the acceptable standard.
Parish: LaSalle Population served: 495 The issues: Rogers has been under a system wide boil advisory due to holes in its storage tank, which could allow contaminants to get into the water.
Parish: LaSalle Population served: 792 The issues: The system has been under an administrative order for several years for not meeting the Disinfection Byproducts Rule, a federal regulation designed to prevent contaminants from forming in water when it’s treated with chemicals.
The system has been cited for levels of trihalomethanes above the acceptable standard several times since 2014.

Seven of the 10 most distressed water systems in the state are in Central Louisiana, according to the governor’s Rural Water Infrastructure Committee.
The committee is tasked with helping at-risk water systems to address their issues before they reach a crisis point.
Among the 10 systems on the list are the Hammock Water System in Rapides Parish; the Rogers Community Water System and Town of Tullos Water System in LaSalle Parish; the Clarence Water System and Powhatan Water System in Natchitoches Parish; the Enterprise Water System in Catahoula Parish; and the Town of Clayton Water System in Concordia Parish.
(Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) The list of 10 systems the Rural Water Infrastructure Committee came up with isn’t a list of the worst systems in the state, health officials are quick to point out, or even the ones with the most violations.
"All of our agencies have these resources," Durham said.
What can the committee do to help struggling water systems?
Parish: Rapides Population served: 900 The issues: The system has been cited several times, dating back to 2010, for levels of arsenic above the acceptable standard.
Parish: LaSalle Population served: 495 The issues: Rogers has been under a system wide boil advisory due to holes in its storage tank, which could allow contaminants to get into the water.
Parish: LaSalle Population served: 792 The issues: The system has been under an administrative order for several years for not meeting the Disinfection Byproducts Rule, a federal regulation designed to prevent contaminants from forming in water when it’s treated with chemicals.
The system has been cited for levels of trihalomethanes above the acceptable standard several times since 2014.

“I know that’s going to be years from now but this is a good start,” Brown said of the announcement from Environment Minister Iain Rankin on Tuesday morning that the province will take a first step toward remediating a former construction and demolition site in Harrietsfield that has been contaminating the water.
“There is contamination from the former RDM Recycling plant in Harrietsfield and there were two ministerial orders issued in 2016 which ordered the companies that were involved to do a site assessment and then report and monitor groundwater and submit a remediation plan,” Rankin said.
“Those orders were not yet complied with.” The minister said his department has exercised its authority under the Environment Act to take the actions that are listed in the ministerial order, the first of which is the site assessment.
Shortly after that we will look at the options provided in that assessment so that we know the extent of the contamination and then we will able to prepare the appropriate plan to remediate.” Stephen MacIsaac, president and CEO of Nova Scotia Lands, said there are a number of questions to be answered in the initial assessment, including the size of the contaminated area.
“The first step is really to go in and do an inventory of the site and collect the information that’s available,” MacIsaac said.
The report said the leaching collection system has not been emptied for 13 years.
In April 2017, Brown filed for a private prosecution under the Environment Act against the two numbered companies that operated the defunct recycling site between 2002 and 2013, citing their failure to comply with ministerial orders.
“They are numbered companies and we know they are before the court and we decided that we are going to take action regardless of what happens there.” Rankin said Tuesday that the initial $225,000 for the assessment will be a fraction of the remediation cost.
“There is an expectation that we will recoup those costs.” MacIsaac said Nova Scotia Lands will collect data, then follow up with a request for proposals to determine the scope of the assessment.
It really depends on what the issues are on site, which we don’t know yet.” Right now, that’s good enough for Brown, who says she’s been battling for clean drinking water for nearly a decade.

NORTHERN MICHIGAN (WPBN/WGTU) — State Rep. Sue Allor will host a tele-town hall meeting Wednesday during which residents can learn more information about PFAS water contamination.
Several experts will join Rep. Allor on the line to answer questions about PFAS – or perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, an emerging type of chemical contaminant identified in groundwater in a number of Michigan communities, including areas near the former Wurtsmith Air Force Base near Oscoda and the Alpena Combat Readiness Training Center.
“People in our area have some very real concerns about how PFAS affects their lives,” said Allor, of Wolverine.
“I respect that, and I’m committed to getting them the answers they deserve.
This is a great opportunity for me to hear from residents and get information out to people.” In an effort to prepare, Allor asks residents to submit questions by emailing them to SueAllor@house.mi.gov using the subject line “PFAS Question.” The questions will be answered by experts from the Michigan PFAS Action Response Team, Department of Environmental Quality, Department of Natural Resources and Department of Health and Human Services.
The tele-town hall will begin at 6:15 p.m.
Residents in communities affected by PFAS contamination might receive a phone call inviting them to join the tele-town hall, but anyone can participate by calling toll-free (855) 756-7520, extension 40499.

There are higher than normal rates of some cancers among residents served by a trio of Bucks and Montgomery county drinking water systems impacted by chemical contamination, according to a new state study.
But the cancer levels fluctuated across the towns, and rates of other cancers are lower than what would be expected, leading the study’s authors to call the results “inconsistent.” “The current results do not indicate consistently higher incidence rates in all service areas for any cancer type,” the study concluded.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health has been studying cancer rates in Warminster, Warrington and Horsham over the past several years.
Between 2005 and 2014, the most recent years available, the department found that combined across all water system areas, women had elevated rates of kidney and pancreatic cancer, while men had elevated bladder cancer rates, compared to the rest of Bucks and Montgomery counties.
“In addition, there are not increased rates in other water service areas reviewed in the study.
“As with prior reviews of cancer information for this area, these results do not show a consistent pattern,” the report stated.
The report also noted several limitations to studying cancer rates.
Some of the highest chemical levels were found in private wells, to which residents would have been directly exposed.
The state health department did not indicate whether it will conduct further analyses of local cancer rates.
Results of the blood testing, which will compare local levels to national averages, could be made publicly available this fall.

There are higher than normal rates of some cancers among residents served by a trio of Bucks and Montgomery county drinking water systems impacted by chemical contamination, according to a new state study.
But the cancer levels fluctuated across the towns, and rates of other cancers are lower than what would be expected, leading the study’s authors to call the results “inconsistent.” “The current results do not indicate consistently higher incidence rates in all service areas for any cancer type,” the study concluded.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health has been studying cancer rates in Warminster, Warrington and Horsham over the past several years.
Between 2005 and 2014, the most recent years available, the department found that combined across all water system areas, women had elevated rates of kidney and pancreatic cancer, while men had elevated bladder cancer rates, compared to the rest of Bucks and Montgomery counties.
“In addition, there are not increased rates in other water service areas reviewed in the study.
“As with prior reviews of cancer information for this area, these results do not show a consistent pattern,” the report stated.
The report also noted several limitations to studying cancer rates.
Some of the highest chemical levels were found in private wells, to which residents would have been directly exposed.
The state health department did not indicate whether it will conduct further analyses of local cancer rates.
Results of the blood testing, which will compare local levels to national averages, could be made publicly available this fall.