The levels of “forever chemicals” detected in Slemon Park’s wells exceed the objective that was set by Health Canada last summer, according to a letter sent to residents of the western Prince Edward Island community on Feb. 5.
The chemicals known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances — or PFAS for short— can be found in everyday items like waterproof gloves, carpets, non-stick cookware and firefighting foam.
“PFAS are highly resistant to degradation, leading to their presence in the environment and potential bioaccumulation in humans and wildlife,” said the letter signed by Shawn McCarvill, the president of Slemon Park Corporation, which manages the business park and residential community located next to the airport at former Canadian Forces Base Summerside.
Health Canada’s drinking water objective sets a “goal for a maximum level of contaminant in drinking water,” the agency’s website says. The objective is in place while an official guideline is being developed.
Both Slemon Park Corporation and the province are taking steps to address the above-objective levels of PFAS in the community’s wells.
In a follow-up letter dated Feb. 13, McCarvill said the corporation will provide water filters for homes and businesses as a short-term solution. Jugs of water are also available for purchase, the letter said.
The corporation is also working on longer-term options, such as adding filtering systems for PFAS to the existing wells, drilling three additional wells at another location, and potentially connecting to the City of Summerside for water supply, McCarvill said in the Feb. 13 letter.
Effects on health
Water samples from the wells in Slemon Park, as well as samples from other parts of the Island, were tested by P.E.I.’s Department of Environment, Energy and Climate Action.
Department officials notified Slemon Park about the above-objective result “out of an abundance of caution,” said Morley Foy, the acting manager for the drinking water/wastewater section of the department.
Health Canada indicates that bathing, showering, washing dishes, brushing teeth and doing laundry with water containing PFAS is safe.— P.E.I.’s Chief Public Health Office
Foy said it’s important to point out that the objective is a level that triggers a certain level of treatment, not a health objective.
“Testing indicates that drinking water in P.E.I. is typically lower than the current objective for PFAS,” the province’s Chief Public Health Office said in an email statement to CBC News.
“Health Canada indicates that bathing, showering, washing dishes, brushing teeth and doing laundry with water containing PFAS is safe,” the statement said.
Being exposed to an amount of PFAS above the objective does not necessarily mean that health problems will occur, Health Canada said in an email statement.
“Whether or not health problems develop depends on how much, how often, and for how long an individual is exposed, as well as to which PFAS an individual is exposed,” the statement said.
PFAS refers to a broad class of substances and the adverse effects associated with individual chemicals or substances that fall into the broader category are not currently well understood, the statement said.
“However, an increasing body of scientific evidence suggests that concerns for human health and the environment for well-studied PFAS are broadly applicable to other PFAS,” the public health office said.
“Scientists are still working to understand more about the health effects of low-level, long-term exposures to the broader class of PFAS.”
‘Everywhere all at once’
As research continues into the effects of PFAS on human health, some advocates have said the chemicals should be phased out.
Johan Foster is an associate professor of chemical and biological engineering in the Faculty of Applied Science, at UBC. As lead researcher of this project, he explains a trap and treatment process that destroys harmful PFAS chemicals in our environment.
“They are known as forever chemicals because they don’t break down,” said Cassie Barker, senior program manager for toxics at Environmental Defence Canada, a charity that advocates for safe environments and healthy communities.
“Once the cat’s out of the bag, we are dealing with kind of a ubiquitous exposure, so they are everywhere all at once and we are exposed to them,” Barker said.
Barker said she thinks all uses of PFAS should be reconsidered, starting with items that are used on a daily basis.
Residents of Slemon Park didn’t want to do on-camera interviews for this story but some told CBC News they were concerned about PFAS. Others said they drink only bottled water and aren’t too worried.
