Provide Clean Drinking Water to Residents Affected by the August AFFF Release at Brunswick Landing
Jeffrey Jordan, Acting Executive Director, Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority
A new community group, Brunswick United for a Safe Environment is petitioning MRRA to take Immediate Action to ensure clean drinking water to residents impacted by the August AFFF spill.
This environmental catastrophe has compromised the safety of private wells, posing a direct threat to the health and well-being of those with unsafe levels of PFAS chemicals in their well water.
To:
Jeffrey Jordan, Acting Executive Director, Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority
From:
[Your Name]
We, the undersigned residents of Brunswick, are requesting meaningful action regarding the effects of the August 19, 2024 Aqueous Film-Forming Foam (AFFF) spill in Hangar 4 at the Brunswick Executive Airport, operated by MRRA, on the groundwater supply feeding private wells surrounding Brunswick Landing.
This environmental catastrophe has compromised the safety of private wells, posing a direct threat to the health and well-being of those with unsafe levels of PFAS chemicals in their well water.
The Maine Department of Environmental Protection (“Maine DEP”) has commenced testing of drinking water wells of homes. The first round of testing, performed on samples obtained in the period September 9-10, 2024, shows that the water wells of some homes already exceed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs) for one or more Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (“PFAS”). Moreover, it is anticipated that PFAS levels have increased even further since the wells were last tested and will continue to rise as groundwater continues to emanate from the site of the release.
Despite public statements that “We take this situation very seriously and are committed to addressing the cleanup with the utmost urgency and transparency,” MRRA has offered no solutions to provide safe water to Brunswick residents.
As a result, Brunswick residents have been forced to bear the burdens of obtaining clean water, including purchasing alternative sources of water (some residents have reported spending $400 or more per month to purchase bottled water), additional water testing, and/or considering costly alternatives such as filtration systems or connecting to the town’s municipal water supply. The residents of this community should not be left to shoulder the financial and health burdens of a contamination crisis for which it bears no responsibility. Every resident and taxpayer of Brunswick deserves safe water.
We call upon MRRA and its Board to take immediate, decisive action, including but not limited to the following:
1. Short-term access to clean drinking water: Provide ongoing access to clean bottled drinking water and/or access to Brunswick-Topsham Water District water at no cost for all affected residents with detectable PFAS contamination in well water, as well as for residents in areas identified by Maine DEP to be likely at risk, until the contamination is fully resolved. In addition, we request MRRA inform the public about the availability of clean water on the MRRA website.
2. Long-term access to clean water: Fully fund the installation of filtration systems for impacted private wells or connections to the town’s water supply for households wishing to pursue this option to ensure long-term access to safe water.
3. Additional & Expanded testing: Provide funds for monthly testing of private wells in impacted areas by a certified laboratory so that residents are quickly notified when PFAS levels increase over time. (Impacted areas include, for example, areas selected by Maine DEP for testing; as well as areas to the north, south, and southeast of the airport consistent with historical knowledge about groundwater flow from the former naval base).
This request is for justice and accountability from MRRA, a quasi-governmental oversight board with a duty to protect public health and ensure that disasters of this magnitude are remedied swiftly and fairly. Neglecting these responsibilities further jeopardizes the lives and safety of residents who rely on your leadership and action.
We ask for implementation of action #1 above within one week of the receipt of this letter, to provide impacted citizens immediate relief. We also ask that you respond with a plan to implement each of these critical measures no later than two weeks after receipt of this letter.
Thank you for your immediate attention to this matter. We trust that you will act in the best interest of the residents affected by a preventable disastrous chemical spill that continues to have damaging effects on the private well water supply in Brunswick’s neighborhoods, ponds, Harpswell Cove, the Androscoggin River, a Brunswick Topsham Water District wellfield, and soil on affected parcels.