The state Department of Health does not yet have any information regarding PFAS levels in Whatcom County drinking water.
Some of the main industries potentially handling PFAS in Whatcom County include waste management, chemical manufacturing, electronics industry and metal coating facilities, according to the EPA data, which was obtained by the nonprofit Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, or PEER, through public records requests. The group began filing for the federal data when the EPA never delivered on a years-old promise to produce an interactive map of PFAS sources and concentrations.
The data reveals more than 120,000 facilities nationwide that may be handling PFAS, a figure more than three times higher than outside experts had estimated, according to PEER. In Washington, there are 1,317 facilities that may be handling PFAS, largely concentrated around Puget Sound.
