DEC: Pesticide isn t the danger. Chemical in its container is
DEC: Pesticide isn t the danger. Chemical in its container is
State blocks use of Anvil 10+10 in mosquito control due to fear of brain disease danger posed by PFAS in containers
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New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Basil Seggos said DEC is blocking the use of a popular pesticide for mosquito control upstate and in New York City following the revelation that the chemicals containers were made with hazardous PFAS compounds. In this photograph, Seggos gives an update on a tanker leak at SABIC Innovative Chemicals facility on Tuesday evening, Sept. 1, 2020, on Creble Road in Bethlehem. (Will Waldron/Times Union)Will Waldron/Albany Times Union
WASHINGTON (January 14, 2021) As part of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) extensive efforts to address PFAS, today the agency is making new information available about EPA testing that shows PFAS contamination from fluorinated containers. Through a coordinated effort with both the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and a pesticide manufacturer, the agency has determined that fluorinated high-density polyethylene (HDPE) containers that are used to store and transport a mosquito control pesticide product contain PFAS compounds that are leaching into the pesticide product. While the agency is early in its investigation and assessment of potential impacts on health or the environment, the affected pesticide manufacturer has voluntarily stopped shipment of any products in fluorinated HDPE containers and is conducting its own testing to confirm EPA results and product stability in un-fluorinated containers. In addition, EPA h
By ROBERT J. DWYER
Wesley J. Ewellâs Bourne Musings column in the January 8 Bourne Enterprise supporting the relocation of the outfall for the Wareham wastewater treatment plant into the Cape Cod Canal at Taylor Point deserves extended comment. I agree that eliminating the wastewater overload to the Agawam River (the location of the existing outfall) and nearby Southside water bodiesâand expanding its service area to connect the many unsewered homes and businesses in Bourne, Wareham and Marionâare sorely needed improvements.
However, Mr. Ewellâs extolling the apparent virtues of the large amount of dilution afforded by the high flow through the canal misses a major important pointâthis dilution is not the limiting factor on the capacity of the Buzzards Bay system to handle the remaining nitrogen and perhaps suspended solids and other pollutants in the effluent. It is the assimilative capacity of the whole bay ecosystem, perhaps down as far as Cuttyhunk and
Worcester’s water filtration plant receives award from state DEP for outstanding energy conservation
Updated Jan 15, 2021;
Worcester’s water filtration plant is receiving an award for outstanding energy conservation during the 2019 calendar year.
The Robert L. Moylan, Jr. Water Filtration Plant was selected to receive a 2020 Public Water System Award from the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, City Manager Edward M. Augustus Jr. announced.
“The award is largely the result of a project to replace the ozone system which began in late 2018 and continued into early 2020,” Augustus wrote in a letter to city council members. “This equipment replacement coupled with an energy-conscious staff and a commitment to energy conservation has culminated in this much reduced use of electricity and recognition from the Commonwealth’s top environmental agency.”
Water Alert
The Town received notice this afternoon of the presence of E. Coli bacteria within drinking water samples collected yesterday, Jan. 12. Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection regulations require the Town to issue a ‘boil water order’ effective immediately.
E. coli bacteria can make you ill, and are a particular concern for people with weakened immune systems. Do not drink tap water without boiling it for at least 1 minute first or use bottled water. Boiled or bottled water should be used for drinking, making ice, food preparation, brushing teeth and washing dishes until further notice.
The Department has removed water sources that tested positive for E. Coli from operation and has increased water disinfection treatments. Follow-up and confirmatory water quality samples will be taken immediately. The results of this testing and system analysis will determine the cause of the positive results. The Department hopes to resolve this inconvenience