Saipan residents warned of elevated PFAS levels in some southern villages

The Commonwealth Utilities Corporation found elevated levels of PFAS, known as forever chemicals, in some southern villages on Saipan. The CUC found elevated levels of PFAS, also known as forever chemicals, in some southern villages on Saipan connected to the Isley Reservoir Entry Point.

The safety standard is set through what’s called the Maximum Contaminant Level, or MCL, which is 70 parts per trillion. A sample collected from the Isley Reservoir on September 6 contained 108.2 parts per trillion and a sample collected on September 27 had a level of 77.8 parts per trillion. Both are above the MCL.

The affected area includes customers in Chalan Kanoa, San Antonio, Afetnas, portions of Koblerville, As Perdido, As Gonno, Susupe, San Jose, Oleai, and portions of Chalan Laulau Beach Road.

Kevin Watson, Deputy Executive Director at the CUC, told KUAM News, "After getting these results that we still exceeded the 70 parts per trillion we have taken off some of our higher contaminated wells to bring that level down below the 70 parts per trillion. We will be testing another round of samples either this week or between November 27 and December 1st, and we sample on a quarterly basis. So that will be our fourth quarter for this year. And hopefully, the measures we are taking will reduce it well below the 70 parts per trillion."

Before the samples were collected, CUC installed Granular Activated Carbon treatment units to decrease PFAS levels. They say they changed 20 vessels at 10 wells before August. CUC plans to install two larger GAC units by the end of the year and take two wells with high PFAS levels offline. They’re seeking long-term solutions.

"For long term, where we are looking at alternative solutions," Watson added. "We're going to be putting additional GAC treatment and some additional wells and a larger unit that will be basically polishing up the ones we've already got on line that will treat 1,000 gallons per minute. The construction of those are scheduled to start this month and be completed by around March. We are also working with EPA on allowing them to do a pilot study here on Saipan for destruction of the PFAS compounds and treatment, which will give us the information needed for a more long-term solution."

CUC says “This is not an emergency.” They define PFAS as a large, complex group of synthetic chemicals that have been used in consumer products since the 1950s. It’s also found in firefighting foam. It could cause illness if consumed.

Travis Spaeth, Safe Drinking Water Program Manager, Bureau of Environmental & Coastal Quality, said, "It seems highly, highly likely this is all or mostly from AFF they call it, it’s airport firefighting foam. So it's something that they use to train with, to put out fires at airports around the country. The breakdown of what we are seeing in the water is highly probable it’s AFFF. So that was used years ago and has been sort of phased out but we're now seeing it in the groundwater."

Residents in the affected villages should not drink the tap water or use it to cook, however, CUC says it is still safe to shower and bathe in. This is not a new issue.

"CUC has actually been monitoring a lot of these places quarterly for quite some time. We first saw detections back in 2015. And back then it wasn't regulated at all across anywhere in the country. And then shortly thereafter, EPA came out with a health advisory and that kind of created cause for alarm. And ever since we've been trying to proactively both sample and CUC has been adding treatment facilities to water wells within these areas," Spaeth added.

And there’s still more to learn, as Spaeth said, "We’re unknown as to how much firefighting foam was used in the area. And so we really don't have a big grasp on how long we'll need to treat the water. It might be for many, many years. So it is alarming, but there is treatment facilities being constructed as we speak and lots of other things are going on behind the scenes as we move forward with this."