Summerville, Georgia is unable to drink their tap water. According to the city’s website, results of water samples tested from Raccoon Creek Treatment Plant revealed 98 parts per trillion of PFOA and PFOS chemicals. Other test results from samples taken at Goodwin Hill Tank showed 92 ppt of PFOA and PFOS. The EPA’s health advisory level for these chemicals is 70 ppt. This water was tested on January 30th 2020, but before that, it wasn’t tested since the EPA changed the health advisory levels of PFAS in 2016.
City officials notified residents of the harmful chemicals ––warning them not to drink the water until it’s clean. Due to this contamination, the city is providing packs of water bottles along with a clean water tank where citizens can fill jugs of their own.
The city has a full list of actions they are taking to provide clean water:
- The City is providing notice by mail to all customers.
- The City has contacted local media, including newspaper, radio, and social media.
- The City provided direct notification to all elementary schools, day care facilities, and health care facilities.
- The City plans to provide clean water distribution from a centralized fill station as soon as possible. The City will provide the location and hours of distribution as soon as that information is available.
- The City is investigating treatment options for the Raccoon Creek treatment plant.
- The City is investigating increasing the usage of water sources other than the Raccoon Creek treatment plant. These sources include the City’s Lowe Springs, which was also sampled at the same time and the results show that no PFOS or PFOA was detected. The City also has interconnections with nearby public water systems and will investigate purchases from these systems in order to decrease the amount of water coming from Raccoon Creek.
The City’s website also says it is safe for people to shower, brush teeth and wash dishes with the water as long as they aren’t swallowing it. The residents of Summerville have been living without clean drinking water for over two weeks. No one knows when their water will be ok to drink again.
