Andover Is Testing For Toxic PFAs After Lowell Permit Renewal

ANDOVER, MA — Andover is currently having tests conducted on its water supply, after a permit was renewed that could result in toxic pollutants in the Merrimack River, the town said. The town worked with the Department of Environmental Protection to collect samples Monday from both the source water and water that has passed through the town's treatment system. The renewed permit allows a New Hampshire landfill to send up to 100,000 gallons a day of polluted runoff to Lowell's Duck Island Clean Water Facility.

The water empties from Lowell's treatment facility empties into the Merrimack River upriver of towns including Andover and Tewksbury that use it as a source of drinking water. According to a Boston Globe story published this week, the landfill's owner "acknowledged that the runoff includes high amounts of PFAs," a type of toxic chemical known as "forever chemicals" due to how long they take to break down.

Samples were collected Monday, Nov. 4, and may take weeks to analyze, the town said. Results will be published for public review. The town has tested for PFAs in the past, and found they were below the detection limit available at the time. But they are not regularly tested for.

"Federal regulators say tests of drinking water in communities downstream from the Lowell plant, including Andover, Lawrence, Methuen, and Tewksbury, found no evidence of harmful amounts of the six most prevalent PFAS chemicals in 2014," according to the Globe report. "But that was before the landfill signed a contract with the treatment plant in 2017 to take the waste water. The water has not been tested for PFAS since then, EPA officials said.

"Water entering Andover’s treatment plant and distribution system is tested consistently for regulated containments," the town said. "Andover continues to meet MassDEP requirements and water is safe for consumption."

Christopher Huffaker can be reached at chris.huffaker@patch.com and 412-265-8353.