MERRIMACK — Now that drought conditions are over, school officials are asking that all local schools once again be tested for possible water contamination, specifically perfluorooctanoic acid.
It was one year ago when low levels of PFOA were discovered in water samples taken at Merrimack schools ranging from 21 parts per trillion (ppt) to 43 ppt, which is lower than the state’s advisory level of 70 ppt — the same standard set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
In May 2016, 21 ppt of PFOA was detected at Thorntons Ferry School, 23 ppt was discovered at Merrimack Middle School and 24 ppt was found at Merrimack High School. At Mastricola Upper Elementary School and Mastricola Elementary School, 27 ppt of PFOA was detected last May, and at Reeds Ferry School, the PFOA contamination was found at 43 ppt.
Reeds Ferry School is the Merrimack school closest to Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics, a company that the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services believes is the likely source of water contamination discovered in southern New Hampshire.