PFAS Statements

PFAS HEARING of THURSDAY 20 FEBRUARY 2025

On Thursday, 20 February 2025, officials from DEP’s Hazardous Sites Cleanup Program held a public hearing at Shippensburg Borough offices concerning the presence of high levels of “forever chemicals”, from contaminated groundwater, in Middle Spring Creek and private wells in the Middle Spring neighborhood, about 1.5 miles north of Shippensburg Borough.

The meeting was broken into two parts: a pre-hearing presentation, followed by a formal DEP public hearing on their interim response to the Middle Spring PFAS detections. This interim response will be followed up once more is learned about the extent and scope of the hazardous contaminants.

The pre-hearing presentation was led by Ben Thonus and Crystal Wolf, who summarized how DEP learned of the contamination issue, the testing they have done so far, their initial remediation efforts (offering bottled waters for impacted homeowners), and expected future testing processes to determine the extent and source of the PFAS groundwater plume. This part of the hearing was open to questions from the audience.

The official DEP hearing was led by John Repetz, who read a written statement briefly identifying the site, mentioning the interim remediation options that DEP considered, and focused on their chosen outreach/mitigation methods to date, (i.e. providing impacted homeowners bottled water if wanted). His statement was followed by public comments from Tamela Trussell (Move Past Plastic) and Sean Cornell (President of Middle Spring Watershed Association), each of whom had pre-registered to offer such comments. Others who had not pre-registered were also offered opportunity to make comments for the official DEP record. Under the rules of such hearings the DEP representatives did not respond to any of the public comments on record. 

The window to submit written comments, suggestions, or other feedback  about DEP’s handling of the Middle Creek PFAS site for their official record remains open until 11 April 2025. Comments can be submitted in writing to DEP Hazardous Sites Cleanup Program, Southcentral Regional Office, 909 Elmerton Avenue, Harrisburg, PA, 17110,  or via email to jrepetz@pa.gov.  

WHAT WE LEARNED (or already knew)?

1. DEP’s investigation stemmed from another organization's detection of abnormal levels of these chemicals downstream in Conodoguinet Creek. Upstream sampling revealed that the concentrations of these toxic chemicals increased toward Middle Spring and Shippensburg. 

2. DEP has completed two rounds of testing: one in November 2023 to confirm the presence of a PFAS/PFOA hotspot in surface water in the stream along Fish Hatchery Road, and a second in May 2024 that focused on well water from nine surrounding homes located within about a quarter mile of “ground zero.” Seven homes were found to have very high PFAS levels (well above accepted safe levels) and 3 of the 7 families opted to receive bottled water so they are no longer consuming contaminated water from their wells. Water sampling in Branch Creek below Shippensburg’s Wastewater Treatment Facility but above the PFAS "hot spot" revealed far lower levels of these contaminants, showing that the vast majority of PFAS in the creek is introduced at the "hot spot". 

3. PFAS/PFOA chemicals, otherwise known as forever chemicals, are per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), and perfluorooctanoic acids (PFOA). These are toxic substances that can significantly impact human, plant, and animal health. Potential impacts include liver, immune and reproductive system diseases, fetal development issues, increased cholesterol concerns, thyroid dysfunction, and certain cancers. At low concentrations, the impacts are less well-understood, but they accumulate in body tissues over time making them a significant public health issue.

4. Further rounds of testing to identify the extent and possibly the source of the groundwater contamination, should begin in the next couple weeks. Letters will be sent from DEP to local homeowners with known wells near the existing study area. DEP will request permission from homeowners to sample their water to further explore the extent of the contamination and to help formalize a plan to mitigate and/or remediate future impacts. DEP needs this permission so they can more adequately evaluate the scope of the problem and reduce future risk to people, livestock, and the environment.

5. People who get water from private wells in this general area may wish to have their wells tested. MSWA particularly recommends those on well water who live on Fish Hatchery Road, off Old Mill Road, or off Roxbury Road from Old Mill Road to the vicinity of Thornwood Road should strongly consider getting their household water tested for PFAS, Some portion of those may already be selected for inclusion in the next round of DEP testing. Homeowners who want to find out if they will be included, or can be, are advised to contact DEP Environmental Protection Specialist Crystal Wolf at crywolf@pa.gov   There are also reputable/certified private labs that offer PFAS testing, at a cost.

6. As the weather warms to suitable temperatures for sampling, DEP will be working with Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission to assess the extent of PFAS accumulation in fish and possibly other aquatic organisms in Middle Spring Creek. These chemicals are known to accumulate biologically to higher and higher concentrations with numerous documented health effects. DEP/PFBC needs to assess whether these chemicals are accumulating in our stream’s animal life and whether there is a risk to humans who fish in these waters (or who hunt/consume animals drinking from the stream).

7. Concerning the potential source of the contamination, DEP indicated the PFAS-laden water is coming from groundwater (in limestone geological strata) via wells and springs. The source  of the PFAS to the groundwater is as yet unknown. Asked whether Shippensburg PFAS had been traced to historic manufacturing industries, DEP replied they were unaware of that claim or any information on which it might be based. There has been speculation based on Shippensburg’s history of furniture and textile manufacturing and the fact that such industries are among those that were frequent sources of PFAS in the past. It is hoped that these tidbits may have some utility in guiding local PFAS testing to determine origin of the contamination.

Informally, after the hearing, Watershed Specialist Brooke Weary (Cumberland County Conservation District), Sean Cornell, and other MSWA members spoke briefly with Crystal Wolf, and shared information we believe may help DEP efforts toward tracing a potential source of the PFAS. 

Middle Spring Watershed Association expects to submit further written feedback to DEP in the next few weeks and will work to inform and educate local community members about the issue. Concerned community members are encouraged to learn more, join MSWA to support our education/watershed protection efforts, and communicate their concerns to both Franklin and Cumberland County Conservation Districts as well as the DEP. If you would like your comments added to the official comments provided by MSWA to DEP, they should be sent to MSWAPresident@gmail.com.     

Image showing results of selected sites tested for PFAS levels in November 2023 (image courtesy of DEP Hazardous Sites Cleanup Program)
Note the difference in levels between Burd Run (002) and Middle Spring Creek (003) just above their confluence versus downstream sites (004, 005, 006, and 007)