Consultant: PFAS contamination around Kingston fire station is delineated; more sampling, a groundwater-management permit and 12 new monitoring wells planned

Bill Maher, senior project manager for Sanborn Head, told the Kingston Board of Health on March 31 that the consulting firm will submit a supplemental site investigation this summer and expects to file a Groundwater Management Permit after additional monitoring wells are installed.

The investigation follows state testing that found elevated per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in and around the town's former fire station. "We do think there's a suggestion that there are multiple sources, not just the fire station," Maher said, describing chemical signatures and groundwater flow as complicating factors. The state's contaminated-site rules (Env-Or 600) will govern the next steps.

Why this matters: PFAS are persistent "forever" chemicals used in many consumer products and in aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) used for firefighting. Sanborn Head said 27 household point-of-entry treatment (POET) systems are in place, one property is receiving bottled water, and six private wells are on a sampling schedule. The town, as the responsible party named by New…