Stillwater to treat water for PFAS with $2.5M temporary facility

Construction will begin this summer on a temporary cure to PFAS chemicals located in parts of Stillwater s water supply Territory and Johnson Inc of Eau Claire Wis submitted the lowest bid to construct a temporary facility to treat water from one of Stillwater s wells to meet the latest standards for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances also known as forever chemicals because they resist current down in the climate Five bids were received and opened city executives stated Industry and Johnson which has a local office in Stillwater submitted a bid of which beat the engineer s estimate of city leaders revealed The Stillwater City Council voted June to accept the bid The facility which will be located adjacent to Well No near Benson Park is expected to be in operation until a permanent resolution is discovered The facility will use granulated activated carbon to treat the water The city secured a million grant from the Masses Facilities Authority for construction of the temporary water healing facility stated City Administrator Joe Kohlmann Construction will begin this summer and the facility should be operational by late or early he commented PFAS chemicals were identified to have contaminated drinking water supplies in parts of the eastern Twin Cities including in Stillwater s groundwater supply M and other companies manufactured the substances for use in products ranging from nonstick cookware to firefighting foam but now they have made their way into water and food supplies across the country and have been linked to cancers and other fitness issues The Trump administration just now informed plans to relax limits on certain forever chemicals But for two commonly determined types PFOA and PFOS the limits put in place by the Biden administration will remain in place Utilities will have two more years until to meet them Two wells in Stillwater Well No and Well No were located to contain PFAS at levels above health-based guidance values for drinking water An additional well Well No contains PFAS at levels just below these standards All three wells are at this time inactive and are not providing water for the population Kohlmann stated The temporary cure facility at Well No will ensure the well can safely be put back into system to meet drinking-water standards he stated Related Articles Driver dies in single-vehicle crash in Scandia Emaciated stowaway cat discovered in Minnesota after epic journey from China Stillwater Lift Bridge rescue call was false alarm personnel say East Metro Softball Sportsman of the Year Forest Lake s Avery Muellner Retiring Woodbury city administrator says over years he s watched the city grow