A new report confirms the presence of so-called “forever chemicals” in soil and groundwater near an old fire station in Nikiski. The same chemicals were found in the wells of a nearby public water utility. There aren’t any plans to clean up the contamination and some toxics researchers say the state isn’t taking the problem as seriously as it should.
Bill O’Connell manages cleanup of contaminated sites for the state Department of Environmental Conservation. He says the state study had a clear objective.
“One of the purposes of the work that DEC did was to evaluate potential sources for the PFAS that had already been documented as being present in the Nikishka Bay Public Water System,” he said.
PFAS are per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, also called forever chemicals. They’re hardy – waterproof, stain resistant and nonstick, which makes them ideal for their historic use in industrial settings. But even at low levels they’re also linked to adverse health conditions.
“In the peer reviewed literature, exposure to these chemicals at extremely low concentrations are linked with a range of adverse health outcomes, including different types of cancer, including kidney and testicular cancer, neurodevelopmental harm, immune system impairment, as well as reproductive and fertility problems,” said Pamela Miller, founder and executive director of Alaska Community Action on Toxics.
Miller has long led the fight against exposure to toxic substances in Alaska. Her work takes her to communities around the state, including Nikiski.
It’s been more than a year since higher-than-safe levels of PFAS were detected in the Nikishka Bay Public Water System. The utility supplies drinking water to about 80 customers near Nikiski Middle/High School.
But until this report, the state, utility and residents weren’t certain about where the contamination was coming from. In Alaska, PFAS are primarily linked to fire-fighting foam. The Nikishka Bay wellhouse is adjacent to a former Nikiski fire station.
“We knew we had a source of PFAs very close to this public water system, and we had an old fire station, like, literally, like, right next door,” he said. “And then when you’re finding the PFOS and PFOA in the surface soil, that data indicates that there was a release of something on the ground at that location that did infiltrate into the groundwater.”
David Kranich is the principal of Northern Utility Services, which oversees Nikishka Bay. He proactively tested the Nikiski wells in 2023 after learning about the risks associated with PFAS. When tests came back with higher-than-safe contamination levels, Kranich reported the results to the state, which initiated the study.
Within the utility, Kranich says, they’ve tried to tackle the problem in a few ways. Using a state grant, they’re piloting two types of well filters that he says are successfully removing PFAS to non-detectable levels. And he says the utility considered buying every customer a countertop filter for their taps.
But Kranich says neither option is a long-term solution. He says they’re looking at relocating their wells away from the contaminated area. But that’ll be expensive, and Nikishka Bay is a small cooperative.
“The easy solution would be to move the wells,” he said. “But to do that, we have to secure a site and negotiate land use agreements and we have to drill a test well.”
So far, PFAS haven’t been detected in any of the private drinking water wells tested by the state. A separate study published last year tested 16 water samples.
But Miller, the toxics researcher, says Nikishka Bay is vulnerable.
“I think it's going to be very difficult to protect people that are on public and private wells in this area,” she said.
And even though the state’s confirmed PFAS contamination, O’Connell, with the Department of Environmental Conservation, says there aren’t any plans to clean up the site.
“It certainly triggers additional conversations that the department will be having, but, but those haven't occurred yet,” he said.
Cleanup is expensive. It’s logistically challenging. And O’Connell says the state’s top concern is drinking water, which they say Nikishka Bay is addressing.
But that’s just in Nikiski. There are lots of fire stations on the Kenai Peninsula. And O’Connell says firefighting foam tied to PFAS contamination was used for decades.
“Fire stations and federal and state agencies, they sprayed this stuff all over the place without any thought to any risk it might be causing,” he said. “And so it's really hard to sort of backtrack into the regulations, which are designed to kind of prevent a release and to respond to a spill.”
Those regulations are new to Alaska. State lawmakers passed a bill last year requiring fire departments to stop using the type of firefighting foam that causes PFAS contamination. And O’Connell says the department is able to follow up with individual reports of possible contaminated ground water.
But Miller says the state is falling short.
“Our state is way behind the times compared with other states, in not only understanding this issue and the public health threats that PFAS pose to people, but also in addressing and preventing further harm and providing safe drinking water,” she said.
O’Connell says the Department of Environmental Conservation will investigate concerns about PFAS contamination in groundwater. The Alaska Community Action on Toxics also provides free kits for people interested in testing their water.
