Second round of testing of overflow water from Freedom site shows no traces of MCHM

 

Results from a second set of test samples on water analyzed following an overflow of stormwater at the Freedom Industries spill site into the Elk River have come back showing non-detectable levels of MCHM. These results follow earlier test results released by West Virginia American Water that also showed non-detectable levels of the material.

The latest results, which came from Research Environmental & Industrial Consultants Inc., also known as REIC Labs, were for four samples of raw water and four samples of treated water from West Virginia American Company’s Charleston plant, the intake for which is about a mile and a half downstream of the spill site.

The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) delivered the samples to the Beaver lab last night and received the results this morning. The testing was unable to detect the contaminant at 2 parts per billion, a threshold that is many times more protective of public health than the safety guidance provided by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and independent experts.

Contact:

Kelley Gillenwater
304-926-0499, ext. 1331
Kelley.J.Gillenwater@wv.gov