Community PFAS Testing
Massachusetts Water Resources Authority

BEDFORD

You might have seen recent news reports about per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (together abbreviated as PFAS). This is a class of human-made chemicals typically associated with certain fire-fighting foams. These chemicals are persistent and have been used in products we all use for decades.

On October 2, 2020, MassDEP published the drinking water standard or maximum contaminant level (MCL) of 20 nanograms per liter (ng/L), or parts per trillion (ppt), for PFAS based on the sum of concentrations for six PFAS compounds. The six PFAS are: perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS); perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA); perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS); perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA); perfluoroheptanoic acid (PFHpA); and perfluorodecanoic acid (PFDA).

Bedford tested our local well water due to the presence of a potential source of contamination using extremely sensitive analyses. The MassDEP MCL is based on the first six compounds shown in in the table below; the others are additional compounds tested for using the same lab method. using test methods that can detect the presence of these chemicals down to levels below a part per trillion (ppt), Bedford detected some of these chemicals in local well water.

Based on the 2019 voluntary test results, Bedford took all three of its Shawsheen wells off-line and is using 100% MWRA water, while the town works with MassDEP to determine safe and cost-effective measures related to PFAS.

2019 PFAS Test Results for Bedford

Information on MWRA PFAS Levels