EPA assessment of Seacoast Superfund site finds ‘unacceptable added risk’ from PFAS

By Claire Sullivan | New Hampshire Bulletin | October 18, 2024

Read the full article by Claire Sullivan (New Hampshire Bulletin)

"Some surface waters and associated wetlands near a Seacoast Superfund site have an “unacceptable added risk” from accidental ingestion, according to a new risk assessment from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

In the risk evaluation dated in September for a number of PFAS chemicals, the EPA determined there was “an unacceptable added risk” from accidental ingestion of surface water “from Berrys Brook, Little River, and associated wetlands near the Coakley Landfill Superfund Site.” It found an incremental lifetime cancer risk level and a non-cancer hazard index higher than EPA targets.

“The levels of contaminants in surface water really haven’t changed since we started testing for them,” said Richard “Skip” Hull, a remedial project manager for the EPA. “What has changed is more and more research on these contaminants, specifically PFAS compounds and the understanding of the toxicity levels, and so that has changed over time, and when that happens, we’ve revisited the risk evaluations and updated them.”