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Spokane County to finalize PFAS task force composition next week after residents push for faster action
Summary
Residents from the West Plains urged the Spokane County commissioners to speed formation of a PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) task force. Commissioner French said the board reviewed a proposed composition and aims to present a formal scope and membership for adoption next week.
Spokane County commissioners heard multiple public pleas on Jan. 7 from West Plains residents calling for a faster, more inclusive response to PFAS contamination and other local water threats.
Residents said they want a task force that will inform a county legislative funding request and accelerate solutions. “Time has become a real factor,” said Greg Balsing, who urged commissioners to abandon a “crawling pace” and to organize a representative, transparent task force. John Hancock and Matthew Sorie also pressed for broader citizen representation and trust-building measures. Krista Connolly, who owns a manufactured-home community affected by contaminated wells, said federal drinking-water guidance issued last year tightened safe levels and that a single technical fix will not work for every household.
The task force was discussed by a commissioner for several minutes. Commissioner French said the board reviewed a task-force composition he first proposed in October and that he and Commissioner Jordan are meeting to revise membership. “The goal…is to have the scope of the task force identified, with the composition and bring that forward, hopefully next week so that the board can adopt it formally,” French said. He said additional citizen members and some state and federal agencies may be added.
Residents and commenters recommended that the task force consider multiple response options beyond point-of-entry filters at individual wells, including municipal connections and other priorities used by the Department of Defense. Krista Connolly told commissioners the county’s legislative agenda includes a $220,000,000 funding request to fund point-of-entry systems but asked that the county not limit itself to a single solution because “there's not a one-size-fits-all filtration solution.”
No formal vote was taken on Jan. 7. Commissioners signaled a direction to finalize the task-force scope and bring a formal adoption item back to the board; a specific adoption vote was not recorded during the meeting.
