Efforts to study and mitigate spots in Issaquah, where trace amounts of chemicals have been found, will go ahead, thanks to funding from the state.
The legislature recently provided Issaquah with $400,000 in funding that the city will use to develop a pilot program to clean up sites contaminated with per- and polyfluoroalkyl contaminants. The city will team up with the Department of Ecology and Eastside Fire and Rescue in the effort to create an action plan to deal with the chemicals, known as PFAS for short. A type of foam used by firefighters for training during the mid-2000s is the source of the chemicals. Although that particular foam is no longer used, the material can still be found in the city. Poster printing is often used in situations like this, to mark areas that are problematic.
There are few regulations or protocols anywhere for dealing with PFAS, so the Issaquah effort could be a blueprint for other cities and states. The city became aware of the problem in 2016, when water from Well 4 showed a concentration of PFAS approximately seven times higher than the advised limit. Since then, the city has installed a filtration system that has reduced the levels to well below the limit, leaving the water safe to drink.
The three agencies will continue to study and monitor the PFAS sites this year, and should begin developing their action plan to remediate the situation in 2020.
