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Still no action on Cairo water contamination

Jan 27, 2020 11:55 pm
Sarah Trafton reports for Columbia-Greene Media that though the state Attorney General’s Office launched a lawsuit that cited the PFAS contamination in Cairo, no one is publicly working on improving the water quality in the Greene County town. “We do have it in our water, yes,” Town Supervisor John Coyne said of the toxic forever chemical. “Is it within state guidelines, yes. We test it daily and monthly. If it spikes to an alarming level, it is the town’s responsibility to make citizens aware we did have a spike.” The Greene County Training Center on Mountain Avenue is the source of the contamination, as the chemical was used in fire-suppressing foam, and that is close to a well at Angelo Canna Town Park, where the town gets its drinking water. A 2018 water report found that the town’s levels of PFOS was 13.3 parts per trillion and after it was treated with soda ash and chlorine it was 11.3 parts per trillion. Otherwise, Trafton's story does not cite one single government official working on the water issue in Cairo, or any activists protesting about the issue. Nationally, and elsewhere in the Hudson Valley, officials and activists are working on similar PFAS contamination in Hoosick Falls, Newburgh, and many other towns. Two weeks ago the House of Representatives passed new legislation to aggressively police the PFAS chemicals, but President Donald Trump has vowed to veto the bill if it ever gets a vote and passes in the Senate. “It is a serious concern and all water users should be informed,” former Regional EPA Administrator Judith Enck said. “Carbon filtration should be installed and the DEC should rapidly investigate the source of the pollution and get it cleaned up.” Read more about this story at HudsonValley360.com.
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