State officials are working on installing a system to remove harmful compounds from the Town of Blade’s drinking water.
Delaware’s Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control plans to arm Blades’ drinking water wells with a carbon filtration system that will run carbon through the water to remove Perfluorinated Compounds (PFCs). DNREC recently found high levels of these compounds in the town’s three municipal wells.
DNREC Secretary Shawn Garvin says it’s a viable solution. The state had also considered drilling deeper wells.
“There’s a greater certainty that we know of with the carbon filtration and we can get it done a lot faster than drilling wells or running lines to other places,” Garvin said.
The carbon will also remove other harmful compounds from the water if there are any, Garvin said.
Blades residents can still get bottled water from the town’s Fire Hall. Town Administrator Vikki Prettyman said they’ve started using two water buffalos provided by the Delaware National Guard, and residents can refill their jugs the state gave them on Friday with water from the tanks.
Prettyman said ever since the state found harmful levels of PFCs more than two times the human health advisory level of 70 parts per trillion in the town’s water system, the response has been great, and town officials appreciate the community and the state coming together to help out.
“The majority of our residents have been amazing,” Prettyman said. “They appreciate the community and appreciate us getting on top of this so quickly.”
DNREC expects to install the carbon filtration system by the end of this week and have it up and running by the weekend, so residents can drink their tap water again.
There will be a public meeting at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 13 at the Blades Fire Hall for residents to chat with DNREC and the state’s Division of Public Health and ask any remaining questions they have.
