UPDATE: 3,000 people offered bottled water

PARCHMENT, MI -- Drinking water in Parchment, a city named for its paper mill, is contaminated with more than 20 times the federal health advisory for consumption of the per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS.

An estimated 3,000 people are advised by state officials to not drink the water. It's not clear how long the city water has been contaminated, or where the contamination is coming from.

In 2012, the Environmental Protection Agency required cities nationwide to test for six PFAS compounds under the Safe Drinking Water Act. Public water systems serving more than 10,000 people were required to be tested, so Parchment did not test for PFAS.

Contamination in Parchment's water system was not discovered until Thursday, July 26. A test showed concentrations of 1,587 parts per trillion of total PFAS entering the Parchment water supply.

Results showed 670 ppt for PFOA and 740 ppt for PFOS. The EPA health advisory for total PFOS and PFOA is 70-ppt.

Residents are told to stop using the water to drink, cook, use in baby formula, give to pets and use in their gardens for the near future.

Exposure to PFAS has been linked in human studies to some cancers, thyroid disorders, elevated cholesterol and other diseases. Kalamazoo County Medical Director William Nettleton said a community-wide health study would be needed to identify whether specific health outcomes are related to PFAS contamination.

Michigan Department of Environmental Quality spokesperson Scott Dean said it's not clear where the contamination is coming from.

At 3:30 p.m. Thursday, test results were emailed to Dean. High amounts of PFAS were found in the city supply, which extends into parts of Cooper Township.

The Kalamazoo County Health Department released a drinking water advisory at 8:36 p.m. Thursday. At a press conference that collected various federal, state and local leaders, officials said they are working to identify the source of contamination and taking steps to purge Parchment's water supply system.

Substances known collectively as PFAS are an emerging public health threat contaminating water supplies across the Michigan. More than 20 communities across the state have identified contamination sites. That list is expected to grow.

In Kalamazoo County, PFAS levels were found in Richland Township drinking water wells and entering the city of Kalamazoo's wastewater system.

Bottled water is be handed out at Parchment High School starting at 7 a.m. Friday, July 27. Officials said the water will be distributed until Parchment's water supply, which comes from three groundwater aquifers, is deemed safe.

For more information, call either of two Parchment drinking water hotlines at 269-567-7595 or 269-567-2517.

Earlier this year, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality requested wastewater treatment plants across the state investigate potential sources PFAS. A third-party study commissioned by the city of Kalamazoo found industrial sites were dumping the contaminants into its wastewater system.

Parchment dumps its wastewater into the Kalamazoo system, but it was not identified as a possible source of PFAS through the probe. It's not clear why cities using Kalamazoo's wastewater system weren't tested for PFAS, Dean said.

Parchment Mayor Robert Britigan said the city switched to using Kalamazoo's wastewater system as a cost-saving measure. Parchment still provides its own drinking water, though Kalamazoo provides water to 123,000 customers within 10 jurisdictions in the county.

EPA-required tests conducted in 2012 found less than 40 ppt of PFAS in Kalamazoo's drinking water. Groundwater wells which provide the city's system with drinkable water are being tested again, though officials say results are not yet available.

Britigan, who was appointed mayor by the City Commission during in December 2017, said he's not aware of where PFAS contamination could be coming from.

"We knew were being tested; just this afternoon we learned of the results," Britigan said. "We're jumping on this as quickly as we can."

Members of the emergency response team said they went into action immediately after learning of the test results Thursday afternoon. The team includes officials from the Kalamazoo County and state health departments, local public safety departments, MDEQ and elected officials.

Parchment and Cooper Township advised to stop drinking water due to PFAS contamination. Posted by Kalamazoo Gazette on Thursday, July 26, 2018

"The important thing to try to remember here is that this team is very prepared," Sheriff Rick Fuller said. "This team is taking care of the situation and we're going to ask for your patience. We fully recognize the seriousness of the situation and we recognize people are going to have concerns. None of us up here are panicking."

Dean said the Parchment water tests are part of a Michigan PFAS Action and Response Team effort to identify PFAS in 1,380 water supplies throughout the state. The initiative began in May and is starting to "bear fruit," Dean said.

"There is a history of paper manufacturing in (Parchment), I think it's a very good thing to start looking at," Dean said.

Almost 90 percent of drinking water tests for PFAS have been finished in Kalamazoo County, Dean said. Parchment is the first system found to contain PFAS, he said, and it's hard to say whether additional communities will be affected.

Dean couldn't confirm which public water systems have not yet been tested.

"We're committed to testing," Dean said. "Part of MPART's mission is to address contamination wherever we find it and this is an example of the proactive approach to go through the entire public water system in the state, something which has never been done before in this country, to root out this contamination."

In a statement, Gov. Rick Snyder said he directed the state departments of Environmental Quality, Health and Human Services, and state police, as well as MPART to assist the Parchment and Cooper Township.

A separate investigation asked public water systems to find possible industrial sources of PFAS.

In a letter to the DEQ dated April 5, the city of Kalamazoo identified 34 industrial sites possibly discharging PFAS into its wastewater system. By mid-June, the results showed 20 industrial sites were discharging PFAS-contaminated water.

That inquiry led to additional follow-up by the DEQ, which found a historic industrial site in Richland Township caused four drinking water wells to be contaminated with several times greater than the 70 parts-per-trillion EPA health advisory level.

Ten Richland Township households are being provided bottled water, while 25 homes await results taken earlier this month.

After a public informational meeting was held in Richland Township, State Sen. Margaret O'Brien expressed concern that a 2012 report regarding PFAS was not released publicly.

It warned of statewide exposure to toxic chemicals called PFAS long before the state began taking serious steps to address the contamination. At the Thursday press conference, O'Brien said the report should have been taken more seriously.

O'Brien represents Michigan's 20th State Senate District, which contains all of Kalamazoo County. She is seeking reelection in November.

The ultimate solution in Parchment will be to modify the water treatment plant to remove PFAS. The state could contribute some funds toward the effort.