‘I’ve been drinking poison for 30 years’: West Plains residents reckon with slow-moving PFAS cleanup

By Amanda Sullender | The Columbian | December 31, 2023

Read the full article by Amanda Sullender (The Columbian)

"Chuck Danner has stopped drinking water from his private well out in the country on the outskirts of Spokane.

Danner is one of many residents on the West Plains who have been exposed to dangerously high levels of PFAS chemicals. He had thought his 400 foot deep well would have kept him safe from PFAS-contaminated firefighting foam found at the Spokane International Airport and Fairchild Air Force Base. But a recent blood test found PFAS levels in Danner almost twice the upper limit of what the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention believes is safe.

“My emotions have been on a roller coaster for the last couple of months. Anger. Disappointment. Verging on heartbreak,” Danner said in a mid-December interview. “I’ve been drinking poison for 30 years and there’s nothing going to be done about it anytime soon.”

Topics:

• ChemicalsPFAS
• Environment
• Wildlife
• Remediation
• Filtration
• ImpactDrinking water
• ImpactDrinking waterPrivate wells
• Health