The temporary exterior structure housing Well 2 is seen in this December 2018 image. (WNG file photo)
WESTFIELD – Department of Public Works Director David Billips said the temporary treatment facility at Well 2 has been online since Nov. 14. Billips said the water was tested on Oct. 25 and Dec. 20, showing no break-through of poly-fluorinated compounds (PFAS) in either results. The water was tested again last week, and the city is waiting to get the results back, he said.
Billips said the five PFAS compounds that the water is being tested for are the ones that the Department of Environmental Protection has determined could have health effects. The testing is showing non-detect at the midpoint of the Granular Activated Carbon (GAC) filters, and at the point of entry into the water system at the exit of the filters, according to Billips. Test results are also posted in the DPW/Water department section of the city’s website at www.cityofwestfield.org.
Billips said the non-detect means that the compounds are not present even below 2 parts per trillion. To put it into perspective, he said that 2 parts per trillion is the equivalent of a drop of water in an Olympic-sized swimming pool,
Billips said the GAC filtration is working. He said these results conform with those from the GAC filters on several private wells that were installed by the DEP in April of 2017 and have been running at non-detect levels ever since, with no changeout of the carbon filters. “These wells had higher numbers than what we’re trying to remove,” Billips said, adding, “GAC filtration is a proven technology.”
Billips also said there is some false information spreading that byproducts, purportedly arsenic could enter the water from the GAC carbon. He said the carbon is tested extensively before it arrives, and cannot produce arsenic.
The department is also working through the winter on the treatment plant for Wells 7 and 8, which is ahead of schedule. Billips said the goal is to have Wells 7 and 8 up and running by July.
