EDMONDS — The state Department of Ecology is advising the Edmonds School District to “take immediate corrective action” to reduce dangerous forever chemicals in Madrona K-8 School’s stormwater management system, after local water officials and a consulting firm both found contamination.
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, are found in hundreds of products, including nonstick cookware and firefighting foams. When people are exposed, PFAS can increase risks of certain cancers and weaken the body’s immune system.
The chemicals are not affecting the school’s drinking water. But environmental activists and leadership at the Olympic View Water and Sewer District are concerned PFAS will seep into the Deer Creek aquifer that supplies drinking water to homes in Edmonds, Woodway and parts of unincorporated Snohomish County
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In a letter sent earlier this month, officials with Ecology’s Water Quality Program recommended the school district locate the source of the PFAS. If the school district cannot find the source, Ecology proposed using “additional or alternative” stormwater treatment methods known to remove PFAS from runoff.
Removing PFAS from stormwater is an emerging area of research, Ecology spokesperson Colleen Keltz said in an email. But if needed, the school district could use a filter or soil mixture with granular activated carbon to address contamination, she said.
Madrona’s stormwater system uses underground injection control wells — structures that allow fluids to flow into the ground, typically under the force of gravity. The wells are layered with sand and rock to filter out pollutants. After passing through a metal screen at the bottom, the water disperses into the ground.
The Deer Creek aquifer is like “an underground river” beneath the school campus, said Taine Wilton, director of capital projects for the Edmonds School District, in a previous interview with The Daily Herald. The underground wells hover 40 to 50 feet above the aquifer, with layers of silt in between.
Still, in an interview earlier this month, Bob Danson, general manager at Olympic View, said he is concerned the wells “will actually dump stormwater into the aquifer.”
School district staff are reviewing and determining next steps, said spokesperson Curtis Campbell. He did not have information on how much the school district may pay for a new stormwater treatment system.
Ecology has not set a deadline for the school district to complete its recommendations.
“But we have been working with them on this issue and will continue to work with them to ensure that progress is made,” Keltz said.
Almost two years ago, Olympic View detected PFAS in Madrona’s stormwater system.
Olympic View notified the school district, and one year later, the Seattle-based consulting firm Shannon & Wilson tested for PFAS to verify the results. The firm found two PFAS chemicals: PFOA at 22 parts per trillion and PFOS at about 8 parts per trillion.
Joe Scordino, president of the newly-formed Edmonds Environmental Council, said the situation with Madrona affirms locals’ concerns about the city of Edmonds using underground injection control wells in critical aquifer recharge areas, or places where aquifers are particularly vulnerable to contamination.
Ta’Leah Van Sistine: 425-339-3460; taleah.vansistine@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @TaLeahRoseV.
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