I attended the March 23 Fairfield Town Council meeting on the proposal to expand Fairfield’s public water system to address PFAS contamination in private wells in rural areas of the town.
While Fairfield will be one of the first Maine communities out of gate in addressing PFAS contamination, the problem exists in other rural communities throughout the state. Fairfield will serve as a model of how other towns address PFAS contaminated wells in their communities and our state and federal Legislators must take the time to get it right.
The following summarizes some of the key data discussed at the meeting and conversations I’ve had with various state and local agencies.
The total cost of the proposed public water expansion to 474 properties in rural Fairfield is $47.25 million. Of those 474 properties, 157 private wells have tested above the state standard of 20 ppt as of March 23. All households would be required by the Kennebec Water District to connect to the system.
Resolving PFAS drinking water contamination through expansion of the KWD will cost approximately $100,000 per property and $300,000 per affected property. The Fairfield council committed to ensuring that the cost burden of project construction would not fall on local residents, which is why the proposed project was divided into three phases. Construction of a phase would only be initiated once federal or other grant funds are made available. Residents would pay a utility bill to the KWD once connected to the system.
Mediating PFAS contamination with private in-home filtration systems is a more cost-effective short-term solution. The Maine Department of Environmental Protection is currently funding installation of these systems along with testing and filtration replacement as needed. The average cost for a home filtration system is $4,000-$6,000 installed. PFAS testing is $200-$400 per sample and replacement of the filtration cartridges is around $1,500 per exchange. Frequency of monitoring and filtration replacement varied over the first year of the program depending on contamination levels and contractors used. The DEP observed necessary filtration replacement ranged from zero to five times for a given system. Monitoring generally occurred monthly or quarterly utilizing at least three test samples per monitoring event.
Clearly, the most cost-effective means of addressing PFAS well water contamination in rural areas is the use of in-home filtration systems. At a cost of over $300,000 per affected household, expanding the KWD public water system is more expensive than the average value of the homes being serviced. Ironically, the proposed Fairfield water expansion is more cost-effective than it would be in most rural communities affected by PFAS due to existing access to the KWD. The proposed Fairfield project therefore represents a best-case scenario. The cost could be much higher in other, more rural communities. So why are we talking about solving PFAS with public water projects?
The answer is funding. Currently, state funding through the DEP for private well mediation and testing stands at about $20 million over five years. An additional $5 million in federal funds may be available for a two-year period. The other available federal infrastructure funds are earmarked for public water systems only. As PFAS testing around the state continues and more contaminated areas are identified, the concern expressed by the Fairfield council that funds for private well mediation will disappear may be valid. Likewise, given the expense of installing public water systems in rural areas, the limited federal funding available to Maine may also disappear quickly.
Being first out of the gate has its advantages. Fairfield residents with PFAS-contaminated wells are receiving state-funded home filtration systems. What is at issue is whether and for how long state funds will be available to maintain those systems. Fairfield has the option to be one of the first communities in line for federal funds to expand the KWD public system.
The Fairfield council acted responsibly by putting this choice before voters in a non-binding referendum this June. Despite the fact a $47.25 million public water expansion makes little financial sense to anyone, it may be the best choice given current federal funding constraints.
Maine’s congressional delegation should take note of this irrational choice confronting Fairfield voters as it is their policies that have created it. Congress must act to amend current infrastructure legislation to allow state legislatures the discretion to use funds in a manner that best serves their local communities.
Failure to do so will guarantee inadequate funding to resolve PFAS water contamination statewide and PFAS will remain a rural problem in search of a rural solution.
Mark Andre of Oakland is a candidate in the Republican primary for Senate District 16, which includes Waterville, Oakland, Fairfield, Winslow and Albion. He can be reached at: andreforhouse76@yahoo.com
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Comments are no longer available on this story