Drinking water at a South Jersey elementary school has been found to be tainted with a chemical that the Environmental Protection Agency has labeled a likely carcinogen, a union and environmental groups announced yesterday.
In November, water samples were taken at several sites near the massive Chambers Works plant run by DuPont Co. near the Delaware Memorial Bridge, said a spokesman for the United Steelworkers, which represents many DuPont workers.
One of the water samples was taken from a boys' restroom at Paul W. Carleton Elementary School in Penns Grove, five blocks from the Salem County plant.
School district officials yesterday said they were surprised by the announcement that tainted water had been found at Carleton.
"It's news to us right now," said Brian Ferguson, business administrator for the Penns Grove-Carneys Point Regional School District. "Nobody has contacted anyone at the school directly. We're not aware of any testing."
According to the Steelworkers union, the tests revealed high levels of PFOA (perfluorooctanoic acid) in some area drinking water.
PFOA is a chemical used to manufacture Teflon nonstick cookware, Gore-Tex fabrics, and Stainmaster carpeting. It is also used to create nonstick coatings on pizza boxes and microwave popcorn bags. It does not remain in the finished product.
Scientists hired by the union found a level of combined PFOA and PFCs (perfluorinated chemicals) totaling 0.112 parts per billion in the school's water and 0.18 parts per billion of PFOA in a Penns Grove water-supply well.
DuPont maintains that the levels are well under regulatory guidelines and that the numbers released by the union are "unfair."
"They're combining six chemicals to create that 0.112 number," said Bland Dickey, the site manager for the Chambers Works plant. "It scares people unnecessarily about drinking water around the plant."
The levels are cause for alarm to Kurunthachalam Kannan, an environmental chemist and expert on PFOAs who works for the New York State Department of Health.
"What they have found in Penns Grove is very high," Kannan said. "PFOA is usually measured in parts per trillion. 0.112 and 0.18 parts per billion are very high for drinking water."
PFOA is suspected to cause cancer in humans, according to the Environmental Protection Agency, and is known to cause developmental and reproductive problems in laboratory animals.
Kannan said PFOA is also suspected of damaging the human thyroid.
The Steelworkers union, which represents 1,800 workers at six DuPont plants, is engaging in a nationwide DuPont Accountability Project to challenge the company's environmental practices.
A community forum - hosted by the Steelworkers along with the Sierra Club and other environmental groups - will be held tonight at 7 at the Carneys Point YMCA, 204 Shell Rd., to discuss the findings.
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