Council approves $4,218.40 payment for PFOS/PFOA testing; service director outlines water-plant upgrades and $6 million note sale

Martins Ferry City Council voted Dec. 3 to approve payment of $4,218.40 to Massey Labs for laboratory testing of PFOS and PFOA in the city's water wells and heard a detailed update on water-plant work and financing.

Madam President presented an unapproved invoice from Massey Labs for $4,218.40 for PFOS/PFOA testing; Mister Schramm moved approval and Mister Rogers seconded. Council voted by roll call to allow the service director to pay the invoice.

Service Director Sutek told council the city tested all 13 wells and sent samples to an outside laboratory because specialized testing is expensive and requires accredited facilities. Sutek said the plan is to retest a subset of wells periodically (he mentioned taking two or three wells for retesting in a couple of months and then rotating samples) to keep ongoing surveillance of contaminants.

Sutek also provided a status update on water-plant construction: crews are finishing roof work as weather allows, and the plant lacks sufficiently large access doors to remove or replace very large contact tanks — he said a future addition or alternative access will likely be required when major tank replacement is needed. Sutek added that the city expects to sell a $6,000,000 note issue and that proceeds would fund further water-plant upgrades; paperwork for the note sale was described as pending signatures and a favorable market rate would increase available funds.

Why it matters: Testing for PFOS/PFOA is part of ensuring drinking-water safety; the council authorized payment to resume laboratory analysis and the service director signaled ongoing capital needs that the planned financing would address.

Council asked no substantive amendments to the testing payment; the service director emphasized his intent to maintain a retest schedule to monitor wells.