The Story
There’s poisoned water running amuck in Bedford.
What??
A few years ago, a plastic producing company called Saint-Gobain discovered they were leaking large amounts of a certain polymer into the environment. Parts of Merrimack and Litchfield had to be tested, as this chemical known as PFAS causes liver disease. PFAS is an airborne polymer that settles on the ground and permeates into the water and wells systems.
How does this affect Bedford?
They also found traces in some parts of Bedford, so now certain places are getting tested to make sure the water in the wells is safe to use. The area around Bedford Center Road, which includes most of the town offices, is confirmed to have contaminated water. Saint-Gobain is still sampling other areas of Bedford, and traces of PFAS have also been found in Riddle Brook (the actual brook, not the school).
How are they fixing this?
The houses in Merrimack and Litchfield with contaminated wells were compensated with bottled water and some residents in Bedford have been using bottled water for cooking, cleaning, and other things for over two years. However, residents will likely have to wait for a permanent remedy, such as a public water line, until 2022 at the earliest. For now, there could be some smaller, targeted lines for specific affected neighborhoods. Saint-Gobain is still sampling areas, but if you need to get your water tested, you’ve most likely been notified by now.
What about compensation?
Saint-Gobain is notifying all properties within 40 feet of a “positive test” (no, not covid) with water containing PFAS quantities higher than the state standards; however, the state policy is to notify neighbors within 500 feet. Some residents are threatening to sue the company for their lack of responsibility in controlling their impacts. Yeesh.
Why such a visceral reaction?
They should’ve known better than to provoke the moms of Bedford (and we apologize for the hiatus on ragging on them). Saint-Gobain is only responsible to compensate properties north of Route 101, as their agreement with the New Hampshire Office of Environmental Protections states, but there are definitely signs of contamination spread past that zone.
What about consequences?
Although Saint-Gobain has not been directly linked to the PFAS contamination specifically in Bedford, it is unlikely that it is coming from any other source. Town councilor Bill Duschatko cites the fact that the PFAS standards that are considered “unhealthy” have been lowered, as one of the reasons for the hysteria over drinking water. There was no indication on why these standards changed, although it’s sure that there are some qualified scientists behind it. And although their production has slowed, Saint-Gobain is still producing, so we’re not sure if they’re actually facing any consequences for contaminating all this water.
The Runaway
Hopefully the company will get their act together before Bedford turns into a dystopia and we all start turning into chemical-aliens. We’ve had enough of an apocalyptic year already, right?
What to Say…
When your arm finally isn’t sore anymore…
Don’t get used to it because BHS is holding not one, but TWO more vaccination clinics for students. Tomorrow, 5/11, they will be giving second doses of the Pfizer vaccine to 16 and 17 year olds. This clinic is from 3-7pm, with 6 appointments every 4 minutes in the BHS gym. These students must be accompanied by a parent/guardian, which means no sneaking out of the house to get vaccinated. Students need to fill out a form in advance and bring some form of identification to their appointment. The other clinic, happening on Monday, May 17th for 18 year old students to get their second shot of the Moderna vaccine. This one is 2:45-4:45pm with 4 appointments every 4 minutes. Unlike the younger students, 18 year olds do not need to bring a parent/guardian, but they do need to fill out a form and bring an ID. These clinics mean that by the end of the school year, a very large portion of the BHS student body will be fully vaccinated, as well as the entire staff. And it’s looking like the rest of the students will also be able to get vaccinated soon too, as the Pfizer vaccine is just days away from authorization for 12-15 year olds from the FDA. Roll up those sleeves because the shots are a-coming!
When you’re caught in the squirt gun crossfire…
The BHS assassins tournament for this year has officially begun. This is typically a yearly endeavor for the junior class, but due to COVID (surprise, surprise), this year’s seniors never had the chance to participate last year. So this year, both juniors AND seniors are trying to assassinate each other with water guns. Students pay $20 per partnership to play and each partnership is assigned targets they have to eliminate by shooting with a squirt gun. In order to advance to the next round, partnerships have to eliminate both of their targets and avoid getting eliminated themselves. Each round usually lasts about a week. School is off limits during school hours and you can’t get someone at a school event, but you can get them in the parking lot to and from events and you can’t get them in the workplace or a place of worship. The rules usually differ based on who runs the game each year. This year Paige Muir and Jack Malatesta are running it for the senior class and Joe Michael and Mike Remick are running it for the juniors. Oh yeah and for the seniors (we’re not sure about the juniors) there is a massive cash prize of $600 for the winning partnership, so if soaking your friends wasn’t incentive enough to play, the potential to make bank sure should be.
Things to Know
Freshmeat…
8th grade parent and student information night is this Thursday, May 13th, at 6:30pm in the theater.
Time to buy a corsage…
Senior prom is this Saturday.