SELAH, Wash.- After using a fire retardant that flooded the groundwater with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), the Yakima Training Center is making amends to Selah homes by installing filtration systems.
The Point of Entry Treatment systems are set to begin installation in 13 homes on August 31, with 60 homes marked to get the system as well.
“We’re starting with 13 homes and then we’ll continue to progress to get all upwards of 60 POET systems inside the homes,” said LTC Tim Horn, YTC garrison commander. “We’re beginning with the first 13 just to get an idea what it takes to get the systems in.”
LTC Horn says the installation process may take a couple of days per home, but the first 13 will be a measuring stick to find out how long it will take to roll out the POET systems.
The systems show progress for many homes seated around the Training Center, where the Army has been providing bottled waters for families. Brandi Hyatt, living just minutes away from the base, says the bottled water situation has created challenges of living a normal life.
“It’s still going to the YMCA for showers and I still don’t have a way to wash my clothes or my hands in safe water,” said Hyatt. “So, we have to keep talking about it until we get it changed.”
The Selah resident adds that many of her neighbors don’t qualify for bottled water or POET systems, as their water tested below the state action level of 70 parts per trillion in PFAS.
The Army says the testing will continue after installation, including eight weeks of monitoring directly after the POET system is in place.
“We’re going out for the phase 5 testing right now,” says LTC Horn. “There’s a handful of new wells that we haven’t tested and the bulk of them are retesting wells.”
Even with the progress of the POET system, residents including Hyatt are eagerly awaiting clean water in their homes, after promises have been made in the past.
She says an open dialogue between the community and the Army is necessary to get to a true solution to get PFAS out of the drinking water.
“The sooner something like that can happen, the better,” said Hyatt. “However, they promised this to us almost a year ago, last fall in September, and though they are moving forward in a few homes and that’s great, for my home, we haven’t even heard anything about when this could potentially happen.”
