PFAS levels exceed the national provisional guideline value at two water sources in Kin Town

PFAS levels exceed the national provisional guideline value at two water sources in Kin Town


March 4, 2022 Ryukyu Shimpo

By Miho Iwakiri

 

Due to an inspection of the tap water conducted in Kin Town in February, it came to light on March 3 that a level of 59 nanograms per liter (ng/L) of harmful organic fluorine compounds known as PFAS, a level exceeding the national provisional guideline value, was detected in the tap water. A level of 70 ng/L of PFAS, also exceeding the guideline value, was detected in tap water from the same water purification plant in June 2020. This most recent inspection is the second inspection of tap water from this water purification plant. Given that the U.S. military’s Camp Hansen may be the source of the pollution, the Okinawa prefectural government and Kin Town government are requesting, through the Japanese government, that the U.S. military allow entrance to Camp Hansen for an investigation, but have yet to conduct the investigation.

>>What are PFAS? Previously used for frying pans and the like…

The Japanese government has stipulated “a total of 50 nanograms of PFOS/PFOAs per 1 liter” as the aforementioned provisional guideline value.

Kin Town supplies tap water that is a mixture of purified groundwater and water from the Prefectural Enterprise Bureau, 70-80 percent of which is water from the Prefectural Enterprise Bureau. According to a spokesperson from the Kin Town government, a level of 59 ng/L was detected in tap water from one site in Kin Ward out of three sites from which tap water was sampled on February 21. A level of 180 ng/L was recorded at two out of six sites that serve as water sources in Kin Ward.

Before this point, due to PFOS/PFOAs having been detected at levels exceeding the provisional guideline value, the Kin Town government had already stopped drawing water from five sites that normally serve as groundwater sources.

Having received this round of inspection results, the Kin Town government has, as of March 2, stopped using one of the two sites that serve as groundwater sources and where a level of 180 ng/L was detected. Currently, the water quality at six sites that serve as water sources is being reinspected. The Kin Town government is considering whether it is possible to resume drawing water from sites where the numerical value has dropped below the provisional guideline value in the inspection results confirmed on March 4.

Kin Town is moving to quickly service the water main so as to switch to using entirely water from the Prefectural Enterprise Bureau in fiscal year 2023. Town Mayor Hajime Nakama said, “My apologies for causing the townspeople to worry once again. I will continue making efforts to return [levels] to the guideline value, and I will continually ask the national government for an investigation on the base and for health evaluations for the townspeople.”

(English translation by T&CT and Erin Jones)

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