Town Hall Meeting Addresses Chemicals in Lake Calhoun

On May 10 about 70 area residents gathered at St. Mary’s Greek Orthodox Church for a town meeting concerning perfluorochemicals (PFCs) found in Lake Calhoun. This was in response to a warning issued April 16 by the Minnesota Department of Health advising people to not eat more than one bluegill sunfish per month caught in the upper Minneapolis chain of lakes, including Lake Calhoun. This advice was based on analysis of recently completed fish sampling in Lake Calhoun by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency that showed a high level of PFOS (perfluorooctane sulfonate) in fish tissue. Other species of fish also have limits, but these also relate to mercury and PCBs. More than a dozen other lakes in the metro area will also be tested.

The meeting was organized by Senator Scott Dibble and Representative Frank Hornstein, and was also hosted by Representative Margaret Anderson Kelliher, Mayor R.T. Rybak, Council Members Ralph Remington and Betsy Hodges, Park Board members Tracy Nordstrom and Bob Fine, County Commissioner Gail Dorfmann, and Watershed District Board Member Pam Blixt. There was also a large contingent of officials from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA), the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (MDNR).

After orientation by Senator Dibble and Representative Hornstein, and comments by the Mayor and the other elected officials, Paul Hoff of the MPCA made a slide presentation in which he explained the situation. He said that PFCs are proprietary chemicals created by 3M that resist heat, stains, water, oil and grease. They are used in many consumer products and have many industrial uses. Most notably they have been used in 3M’s Scotchgard and Teflon beginning in the late 1940s. 3M phased out their use by 2002, but the chemicals are still being used world-wide.

He explained that the big problem is that these chemicals don’t break down in the environment and so are accumulating. Also, they can easily get into the groundwater and spread over great distances. There is concern that they will get into the aquifers. There are three types of PFCs that are most troublesome, although they are now testing for 17. They have found all three in eastern Washington County. It is the PFOS type of PFC that most accumulates in fish This compound is used in things like fabric coatings, shampoos, floor polish, rust suppressant, denture cleaners and fire-fighting foams.

Lake Calhoun was studied because it was one of the lakes previously tested for the presence of PFCs as part of research by the University of Minnesota. That research found relatively higher levels of PFOS in urban lakes than in other lakes. The Calhoun bluegill numbers are surprisingly high for PFOS, with 319 parts per billion (ppb). This compares to 213 ppb at the Mississippi River by the 3M plant in Cottage Grove and 85 and 63 in other parts of the Mississippi. The water itself is high, with PFOS at 110 ppb and a related PFC, PFOA, at 20 ppb.

Hoff went on to say that it is not known why Lake Calhoun is so high in PFCs compared to the Mississippi River. They are looking at past uses of PFCs in the area, storm water sewage systems and atmospheric factors (like the city incinerator).

Next on the agenda was Laura Solem, at toxicologist with the MPCA. She talked about how they are looking at possible sources of the PFCs, including about 20 storm sewer drainage points. Lake Calhoun has a large watershed, including Minneapolis neighborhoods and about half of St. Louis Park. These include both residential and industrial sites, she said, and they will be getting back samples in several months that will help them determine the sources.

It seems that there are few laboratories that do the testing, and the MDH sends their samples to Victoria, British Columbia. It then takes two to three months to get back the results. Other urban lakes in the metro area are going to be tested, as well as outstate waters. In addition, the MDH will look at other species of fish. They don’t really know why bluegill sunfish have the highest amounts of PFCs, for this is contrary to other contaminants which are usually highest in the large, predatory fish.

Next Pat McCann, a MDH research scientist, assured the audience that the lake is safe for swimming, since the PFCs don’t go through the skin and small amounts that may be ingested wouldn’t be enough to do harm. She also said that water from hand pumps around Lake Calhoun show no signs of PFCs, since they draw from an aquifer 150 feet down. Also, Minneapolis and St. Paul drinking water show no signs of PFCs.

McCann said that animal tests show that low levels of PFCs cause decreased HDL (good cholesterol) and changes in thyroid hormone levels. High levels cause damage to the liver and other organs, developmental problems and cancer. The effect on humans is not well understood. She also said that the Park Board does water testing and that recent tests show low levels of e-coli.

Questions were then taken from the audience. In response to those questions, it was communicated that the only thing that removes PFCs from the water are filters using activated carbon and that production is world-wide and so the level in the environment is sure to go up since the PFCs don’t break down. Moreover, the ability of researchers to detect such chemicals is continually developing, so that we probably will be finding more chemicals in the environment that are worrisome. The federal Clean Water Act comes into play if it is found that PFCs are harmful. Finally, it was stated that the PFCs are sure to get into the aquifers.

A late-breaking development is that the State and 3M have reached an agreement that calls on 3M to conduct an extensive cleanup of long-buried chemicals that have contaminated groundwater in the east metro area. This has 3M spending an undetermined amount to excavate wastes at three company-owned disposal areas and as much as $8 million at the former Washington County landfill in Lake Elmo. Also, they will provide $5 million for additional state research on the chemicals, which 3M manufactured at its Cottage Grove plant until 2002 and disposed of decades ago in area dumps. However, attorneys representing citizens who filed a lawsuit against 3M say that the agreement is faulty and that procedures are poorly prescribed. Also, 16 legislators are worried that the agreement doesn’t provide for the study of health risks to people who have been drinking contaminated water. They want blood tests to monitor for 3M chemicals. Other legislators think that the settlement is better than lengthy litigation.

The agreement also does not provide alternative water supplies for the affected communities. The MDH has said that they will set allowable concentration levels after about a year of animal studies. Many people in the east metro area think they and others have been affected by the chemicals and have filed a lawsuit. Washington County District Judge Mary Hannon will decide in June whether to grant the suit class-action status. Potentially 67,000 water-drinkers in the area could be involved.

3M issued a study saying that the amounts of PFCs in the water are harmless. They base this on at least nine studies of 3M workers who have as much as 160 times higher levels than those found in Washington County residents exposed to the water, and that these workers have had no ill effects.

This session, the Legislature enacted into law three PCF provisions, including a requirement that the MDH establish health risk limits for two PFCs, PFOA and PFOS. Also, that these limits will apply to the whole state and that the MDH must report to the Legislature the health effects of PFCs by January 15, 2008. Another provision requires the MDH to collect data on exposure to hazardous chemicals and to compare that information with detrimental health effects in people. Another law calls for evaluation of methods to remove chemicals from contaminated dump sites in the East Metro