Cape residents will be playing a critical role in a new research center focused on chemical contaminants – specifically PFAS in drinking water – and their effects on human health.
A collaboration between the University of Rhode Island, Harvard University and the Newton-based Silent Spring Institute, the research center is the first step in a five-year project funded by an $8 million grant from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Superfund Research Program.
In addition to generating new knowledge about PFAS and PFOS (perfluorinated and polyfluorinated chemicals), the center’s interdisciplinary team will be partnering with communities on Cape Cod to share findings, promote understanding of issues surrounding PFAS in drinking water, and help inform public health and environmental policies.
Laurel Schaider, Silent Spring’s water quality expert, is co-leading the center's community engagement programs with Alyson McCann of URI’s Department of Natural Resources Science.
In an interview on Monday, Schaider said the Cape was chosen because “Cape Cod is no stranger to these highly-fluorinated substances, and Hyannis is one area where these chemicals have shown up” in the groundwater.
“PFAS are an important water quality concern on the Cape, where they have been found at levels above EPA guidelines in public drinking water wells in Hyannis and Mashpee, and in private wells near Joint Base Cape Cod,” Schaider said. “Our research at Silent Spring has also found lower levels of PFAS in private wells impacted by septic systems across the Cape.”
Schaider said she would be working with residents across Cape Cod to identify sources of contamination and reduce exposures. Additional partners include Cheryl Osimo, Silent Spring's outreach coordinator and co-founder; the Massachusetts Breast Cancer Coalition; GreenCAPE and the Sierra Club.
“Over the next several years, we will be conducting a number of activities, including offering a PFAS tap water testing program for private well owners, conducting surface water sampling across the Cape and hosting community events to share our findings and address people’s questions and concerns,” Schaider said.
“The center brings together people from many different areas, including communications people, toxicologists, environmental engineers and chemists,” Schaider said. Reducing exposure, raising awareness and gaining a better understanding of PFAS health effects are among the center's goals.
The chemicals have been linked to kidney and testicular cancer, thyroid disease, colitis and suppression of the immune system—maladies that lend urgency to the study. Traces have been linked to the use of firefighting foams during past training exercises at the Barnstable Fire Academy.
“We will share new research findings,” Schaider said. “We want the center to be a two-way dialogue. We really want to be a resource to the community, so we want to hear from people about what their concerns are.”