(WPDE) — The South Carolina Dept. of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) held a press briefing on Friday outlining their preliminary data from PFAS tests across the state.
The agency tested over 300 private water wells. Their research is focused on places where they think groundwater may be more vulnerable to PFAS impacts.
While more than 50% of those private wells tested negative for forever chemicals, 46 wells in the Pee Dee region, including Darlington County, tested positive.
The agency said the presence of the chemical in water doesn't change its taste, smell, or color so the best way to make sure your drinking water is safe is by using a carbon filtration system that is certified for PFAS by the National Science Foundation.
The saving grace about PFAS contamination in private well water, or any kind of drinking water, is that there are a number of readily available carbon filtration systems that do a great job at reducing concentrations down to undetectable levels," Environmental Risk Specialist Ray Holberger said.
DHEC said they notified any owners whose wells tested positive for forever chemicals.
There aren't nationwide PFAS drinking water guidelines, so the agency said they're using the Environmental Protection Agency's recommendations in their research. They added that their study isn't over and are still collecting samples from across the state.
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