Data from two years of surface water monitoring for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) indicates that there is a PFAS problem, perhaps a big PFAS problem in parts of the Alabama portion of the Choctawhatchee river basin. Choctawhatchee Riverkeeper® (CRK), a 501 C3 corporation, monitors water quality and the ecological health of the Choctawhatchee River. The results of our monitoring and our knowledge about PFAS makes us concerned about persons using private drinking water wells near known and potential PFAS sources such as Ft. Novosel and landfills all across the river basin.

Due to the levels of PFAS CRK found in Claybank Creek, other streams coming off of Ft. Novosel, and the Choctawhatchee River from a few miles downstream from Newton most all the way to Geneva, CRK is also concerned about fisherpersons and their families consuming fish from these waterways.

While there may be more surface water testing for PFAS, CRK is shifting its focus to sampling and testing of groundwater near Ft. Novosel and near landfills across the Alabama portion of the river basin. CRK has shared its surface water PFAS data with the Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) and the Department has indicated it is developing a surface water monitoring plan to help it determine whether fish tissue testing is warranted.

Residents across the entire Alabama Portion of the river basin residents who live near an active landfill or a closed landfill and have a private well that is utilized for drinking water, to water poultry, livestock, or vegetable gardens are encouraged to consider getting their water tested. CRK has some limited resources to do well testing and for now will direct those resources to some limited testing along Hwy 134 east of Daleville. If any are in that area and have and use a private well please contact Choctawhatchee Riverkeeper via the contact on our website at http://choctawhatcheeriver.org or call or text 334-807-1365. If well testing requests exceed our resources CRK will direct well owners to testing sources At a later date CRK will shift its focus to landfills. And, if ADEM does not do fish tissue testing, CRK will find the required resources and do fish tissue testing itself.

Background on PFAS: PFAS are a group of thousands of synthetic chemicals used in various products and industrial processes that have a very strong carbon to fluorine bonds, known for their resistance to heat, grease, water, and oil. Chemicals with this bond are not found in nature, so the microorganisms that break down many pollutants do not break down PFAS. As a result, these chemicals may be around for many decades, even centuries. This class of chemicals has been used in hundreds of products, such as Teflon pans, raingear, stain resistant carpet and clothing, microwave popcorn bags, fast food boxes and bags, cosmetics, and many, many more.

There is no safe concentration for PFAS save for zero. While the USEPA has set numerical criteria for some PFAS compounds in drinking water it has also set a goal of zero for the compounds it has set limits for. This illustrates just how dangerous to health these chemicals are. The carbon to fluorine bonds are very electronegative and can disrupt hormonal and enzymatic processes in our bodies, contributing to or causing numerous diseases, for example kidney disease, kidney cancer, testicular cancer, ulcerative colitis, liver disease and damaged immune response in children and many others.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) has urged states with fish tissue monitoring programs to test for PFAS. CRK believes that its own data is sufficient to warrant fish tissue testing. The attached maps and data show high levels of PFAS chemicals coming off of
Ft. Novosel in Claybank Creek and especially in Brooking Mill Creek and Dilly Branch just off of Hwy 134. A high level of PFAS chemicals was also found in Golf Creek just downstream from the Dothan landfill. The Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) is developing a plan and will begin its own surface water monitoring plan for PFAS around Ft. Novosel in order to determine whether to begin fish tissue monitoring. CRK has provided all its data to ADEM.

The Choctawhatchee Riverkeeper® (CRK) mission is to protect and restore the ecological health of the Choctawhatchee River, its tributaries, and the surrounding terrestrial systems that constitute the watershed. CRK and its members work to accomplish the mission independently and in cooperation with individuals, institutions, organizations, and agencies using a watershed approach to guarantee clean water, healthy aquatic ecosystems, and public access to and enjoy- ment of the recreational and aesthetic values of the river.

One big CRK concern is fisherpersons who fish Claybank Creek, Dilly Branch, Brooking Mill Creek and the Choctawhatchee River from near Newton down to Geneva,” said Michael Mullen, a Choctawhatchee Riverkeeper. “PFAS in the Choctawhatchee River from the mouth of Hurricane downstream from Newton down to Geneva is at concentrations that suggest that fish tissue concentrations may be a concern for those eating fish from those waters,” according to
Mullen. “Bioconcentration and biomagnification of PFAS very likely could create PFAS levels making consumption of fish a health concern,” Mullen added.

Fisherpersons who frequently eat fish are encouraged to contact the CRK either via its website: http://choctawhatcheeriver.org or call or text 334-807-1365. Residents who live near an active landfill or a closed landfill and have a private well that is utilized for drinking water, or
to water poultry, livestock or vegetable gardens may want to get tested as well. Please feel free to contact CRK if you have any questions about these important environmental health concerns.