Bill Allows Paynesville to Verify Water Quality

(KNSI) — A bill introduced at the State Capitol would allow a central Minnesota city to hire an independent contractor to test water wells after the chemical benzene was found.

Benzene was first detected in the water supply in 1985, and a leaking underground gas tank was removed in 1989. Benzene was detected again in 1997, and the source was determined to be underground fuel storage tanks.

The City of Paynesville has worked with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency to eliminate the contamination, but questions remain about how much is being done to protect the long-term water supply. The bill would allow the city to hire a consultant to examine the cleanup, test wells, and advise the MCPA on what actions need to be taken at the site.

“There have been questions raised about the MPCA’s cleanup process with Paynesville’s wells. Paynesville and other communities experienced contamination from leaking tanks. The drinking water is safe, but we need to ensure that the contamination was remediated properly. The city needs the flexibility to hire a third-party consultant simply to review the process and reports the MPCA used to address the contamination. We want to understand the process and give residents peace of mind,” Howe said.

A press release from Senator Howe included information saying in February, the Office of the Legislative Auditor released a report regarding the MPCA’s Petroleum Remediation Program, finding that agency staff “do not directly investigate petroleum release or clean up petroleum contamination.” Instead, the MPCA relies on environmental consultants to investigate the contamination and then reviews the consultants’ reports to determine what actions are needed at the site. The report recommends that “The Legislature should direct MPCA and the Department of Commerce to collaborate in holding consultants more accountable for poor-quality work on release sites.” The CDC has found that benzene exposure leads to a number of long-term health problems such as anemia, cancer, and death.

This bill was heard in the Senate Environment Finance committee and was laid over for possible inclusion in the committee’s final omnibus bill.

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