TOWN OF STARKS, WI (WSAU-WXPR) – Levels of PFAS hundreds of times higher than what is considered safe for drinking have been found in private wells in eastern Oneida County.
The Department of Health Services considers 20 parts per trillion the limit for safe drinking water.
Of 20 wells that have been tested, 15 in Starks, east of Rhinelander, tested much higher than the standard. Three tested positive, but below Wisconsin Health Guidelines. Two wells were not contaminated.
Kristen Hanneman’s well came back with levels above 15-thousand parts per trillion. “I was shocked. I guess I always attributed PFAS to being a city problem, like an urban area.”
DHS says anyone whose wells test above 20 parts per trillion should stop using that water for drinking and cooking.
Hanneman switched to bottled water right after she learned the results of her well. “We have a family of five. We probably go through $30-40 per week in cooking and providing water to our kids and to take to school, all that stuff. It’s become an expense that’s not really sustainable.”
The Wisconsin DNR is testing wells in a roughly one-mile radius around these wells.
No source for the PFAS has been identified yet. There are no large, industrial manufacturers in the area, nor any businesses that use forever chemicals.
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