Information for Impacted Communities

JUMP TO: Bennington and North Bennington | Clarendon | Pownal | Shaftsbury

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NO. BENNINGTON and BENNINGTON

Public Meetings

Information from Community Meeting on Thursday, April 27, 2017:

• MEMO: Summary of Bennington and North Bennington Community PFOA Meeting, April 2017
• REFERENCED IN THE MEMO: 
  • Watch a recording of the meeting from Bennington College
  • "Understanding PFOA" -- View slide deck from David Bond, Bennington College
  • Joint Statement on the State of Vermont's Agreement from Saint-Gobain to Fund Design Work for Waterline Extension in Bennington 
  • "Gathering and Modeling Data to Understand PFOA Contamination" -- View slide deck from John Schmeltzer, Department of Environmental Conservation

Area of Interest Maps

MAP: Updated Map with Corrective Action Areas
MAP: Designated Areas of Concern in North Bennington and Bennington
MAP: North Bennington Water System Map

How to get your drinking water tested:

If you are within an area of concern: sign-up to get your well tested using this online form for Bennington-area residents. A technician will be in touch to schedule a visit to your home to collect a sample.

If you are not within an area of concern:
Drinking Water Testing Information Sheet for Well Owners (PDF)

Bottled Water Information:

If PFOA was detected in your well in any concentration level, DEC contractor W.B. Mason should be delivering bottled water to your home by now. If this isn't happening, please contact W.B. Mason directly at 508-436-8869.  

Starting on September 26, 2016, bottled water will no longer be available for pick-up from D' s Market & Deli. The Department of Environmental Conservation thanks D's Market & Deli and Village Variety for offering generous service to the community by acting as pick-up locations for bottled water during the many months of PFOA well testing.  

Data

Municipal Water System Extension Studies

Presentation: Water Line Extension Proposed for the Village of North Bennington (PDF 3.17MB). Presented at the July 2016 North Bennington Public Meeting by Otter Creek Engineering.

Revised (July 5, 2016) Preliminary Engineering Report on Bennington Water Distribution System Expansion (PDF, 19.8MB). Prepared by MSK Engineering and Design.

Revised (June 19, 2016) Preliminary Engineering Report on Bennington Water Distribution System Expansion (PDF, 19.5MB). Prepared by MSK Engineering and Design.

Preliminary Engineering Report on Bennington Water Distribution System Expansion (PDF, 10MB). Prepared by MSK Engineering and Design.

Revised (June 24, 2016) Preliminary Engineering Report on Village of North Bennington Water Distribution System Expansion. Prepared by Otter Creek Engineering. 

• Appendix A - Existing Water Distribution System
• Appendix B - PFOA Area of Interest (Prepared by DEC)
• Appendix C - Proposed Water Distribution System Improvements

Preliminary Engineering Report on Village of North Bennington Water Distribution System Expansion (PDF, 35MB). Prepared by Otter Creek Engineering.

Monitoring and Sampling Plans: Drinking Water Wells and Point-of-Entry Treatment Systems 

Audit Summary of Saint-Gobain Sampling Methods (PDF, 0.2MB). Prepared by Weston & Sampson for the DEC.

Water Supply Well Re-Sampling Plan (PDF, 7.2MB). Prepared by C.T. Male Associates for Saint-Gobain. Reviewed and approved by the DEC. 

Recent Letters

Joint Letter: From Governor Peter Shumlin and Governor-elect Phil Scott to Saint-Gobain CEO Tom Kinsky, December 2016
Response Letter: From Saint-Gobain CEO Tom Kinsky to Governor Peter Shumlin and Governor-elect Phil Scott, December 2016

Site History

Chemfab operated in North Bennington from 1970 through 2000, when it was purchased by Saint-Gobain. It was closed in 2002. During its operation, the facility primarily applied PTFE (Teflon) coatings to fiberglass fabrics by dip coating the fabrics in a liquid bath of micron size PTFE particles and various additives (likely including PFOA) followed by ovens to dry and melt the Teflon onto the fabric. PFOA is used in the production of Teflon which may contain residual PFOA in the final product. PFOA also has uses as a surfactant and dispersant in various products including application of Teflon to fabrics and wires. Ultimately, Chemfab was purchased by Saint-Gobain and moved to New Hampshire.

SOUTHERN VERMONT REGIONAL AIRPORT

What is happening in Clarendon?

The Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and the Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) have collectively sampled 74 bedrock and 4 springs (2 of which are sources of drinking water) in the area surrounding the Rutland-Southern Vermont Regional Airport in Clarendon. A sample location map and a table summarizing results has been prepared and is provided through the links below.

Bottled water is being offered to all users of drinking water supplies with detections of PFAS until it can be established that concentrations detected are stable and the health advisory will not be exceeded. If water supplies exceed the health advisory, users will also have a point of entry treatment (POET) system installed to effectively remove the PFAS from the water. The State has installed three residential POETs, one POET on a well serving a barn, and will continue to work to install POETs at any residences where the drinking water health advisory is exceeded.

If you are concerned with the possible contamination of your well and you are not in the area of concern, please see the Drinking Water Testing Info Sheet for Well Owners. Property owners who live near the airport and have questions for the project manager can reach out to Michael Nahmias by phone at 802-522-4595 or by email at michael.nahmias@vermont.gov

While other sources have not been ruled out, the PFAS contamination may stem from aqueous film-forming foams (AFFF) which are required to be available at airports with specific operating certificates. AFFF is used to extinguish fires of flammable liquids such as gasoline or jet fuel, and other hazardous chemicals. At all airports, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) requires specialized firefighting equipment and AFFF to be tested regularly so they will not fail at extinguishing a fire.

A site investigation was completed during the Summer of 2018. Soil and groundwater samples were collected from various locations on the Airport property where AFFF was used regularly. The report on this Site Investigation is currently being prepared by the State’s consultant and will be posted here once it is received by the Vermont DEC.

• May 30, 2018 Press Release - State Agencies Continue Investigating PFAS Contamination at the Rutland-Southern Vermont Regional Airport in Clarendon
• April 5, 2018 Press Release - State Agencies Work to Remove PFAS Contamination From Rutland Business Park Water System

Public Meeting
Both the Vermont DEC and VTrans will attend the Clarendon Selectboard meeting on Monday, October 8, 2018 which starts at 6:00 pm at the Clarendon Grange Hall located at the intersection of Moulton Avenue and Grange Hall Road in Clarendon. The Vermont DEC’s site manager will update the Town on the sampling of bedrock supply wells, as well as the site investigation, before a question and answer session.

Data

POWNAL

How to get your drinking water tested:

If you are within an area of concern: sign-up to get your well tested using this online form for residents of Pownal. A technician will be in touch to schedule a visit to your home to collect a sample.

If you are not within an area of concern:
Drinking Water Testing Information Sheet for Well Owners (PDF)

Where to pick-up bottled water:

NOTE! All residents using the municipal water supply (Pownal Fire District #2) are encouraged to use tap water again for drinking. On July 28, 2016, Governor Shumlin announced the lifting of the "do not drink order" for the municipal water supply. Four new granular activated carbon treatment units are effectively removing PFOA from the water supply. 

If PFOA was detected in your well in any concentration, or you receive water from the Fire District #2 municipal supply, Unicorn Environmental Management should be delivering bottled water to your home. For delivery questions, please contact Michael O'Connor (Unicorn Environmental Management) directly at 203-205-9000 ext. 13. View the home bottled-water delivery notice and fact sheet.

Data

SHAFTSBURY LANDFILL

What is happening in Shaftsbury?

The chemical PFOA was detected at a concentration of 25 parts per trillion in a groundwater monitoring well at the Shaftsbury Landfill. The Town of Shaftsbury tested for perfluorinated compounds at the closed landfill site in response to concerns from local residents about the proximity of the landfill to the former Chemfab plant in North Bennington. Results from the testing events are listed below.

Data