Published: Friday, Oct. 30, 2009 / Updated: Friday, Oct. 30, 2009 10:49 AM
Foxwood wells had chemical traces since 1992, company says
FORT MILL --
New information from the Department of Health and Environmental Control points to an increase in the level of contaminants found in the main well that supplies the Foxwood neighborhood.
Although DHEC officials are saying the levels of chemicals found are not high enough to pose a health risk, the department is holding a public meeting at 6:30 p.m. Monday inside Fort Mill Elementary School to discuss the findings and answer questions.
DHEC spokesman Adam Myrick said traces of two contaminants, trichloroethylene and tetrachlorethelene, have been present in the well and rising since 2002, but the water used by the Foxwood residents hasn't been officially out of compliance with DHEC and federal Environmental Protection Agency standards. In order to be considered out of compliance with DHEC and EPA standards, the water must show levels of the contaminants in samples taken over four quarters.
However, there have been individual samples exceeding the EPA recommendation, Myrick said.
“Even though they are not out of compliance, if we see data indicting levels going up, we're trying to be proactive to offer up some recommendation in how to handle it,” he said.
That information will be presented on Monday night, Myrick said, along with a discussion about Foxwood residents' complaints about the taste, odor and appearance of the water.
Myrick points out that the contaminants are odorless and tasteless and are not related to the discoloration and odor of the water.
“Ultimately, that is the responsibility of the utility,” Myrick said. “But we know it will be discussed on Monday.”
The water is safe to bathe in, cook with and drink, Myrick added.
The wells in Foxwood, which supply approximately 250 homes, are owned by Wikoff Color Corporation, which pumps water as part of its operation. Wikoff provides the water at no charge to Utility Service of South Carolina, which services the subdivision.
In an e-mail sent to the Fort Mill Times Thursday, Wikoff's Director of Research, Don Duncan, said the Fort Mill-based company has known about the presence of contaminants since 1992, but said the levels, with the exception of one test, were far below anything that would be considered dangerous. He also said any contamination in one of the wells has been remediated.
"The contamination threshold of concern as set by DHEC is 5 parts per billion,” Duncan wrote. “This is a very small number. To put this in perspective, 5 ppb is the equivalent of 1 teaspoon of contamination in more than 250,000 gallons. In 1992, the groundwater from one of our wells exceeded this number. Wikoff Color, at its own expense, installed a stripper on this well. This brought the level down below the threshold. Now, there is no detectable contamination in the groundwater pulled from this well.”
According to its Web site, Wikoff Color Corporation, “is a manufacturer of printing inks, varnishes and coatings for the graphic arts industry.” Trichloroethylene is used to remove grease from machinery and textiles. It also is a solvent and is used in paint removers, rug cleaners and adhesives. Tetrachlorethelene is typically found as a discharge from factories and dry cleaners, the EPA reports. According to Duncan, neither is used in Wikoff's manufacturing.
“None of the contaminants are in any of the chemicals that we use in our plant,” he wrote in a follow-up e-mail Friday.
According to Duncan, “The contamination level in the groundwater from the second well is below but approaching 5 ppb. Wikoff Color has told DHEC that we are willing to put a stripper on this well, at our expense, if it becomes necessary. The water meets all of the DHEC requirements for water purity," he wrote in the e-mail.
DHEC called the Monday meeting at Fort Mill Elementary School in response to complaints about the water, Myrick said. Officials with Utility Service of South Carolina could not be reached for comment.
The only residents impacted are those in the Foxwood subdivision off Merritt Road in Fort Mill, Myrick said.
“We have no reason to believe that it has impacted the public water system,” Myrick said, referring to York County water lines.
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