http://cptv.vo.llnwd.net/o2/ypmwebcontent/Neena/ns%20120803%20wellwater.mp3
Stamford is ramping up efforts to test private wells for potentially cancer-causing pesticides that may be in the water. But getting the word out is a slow process, and so far, surrounding towns haven’t shown much concern.
Initially, reports of contamination in Stamford wells by the pesticides chlordane and dieldrin were thought to be contained to the area north of the Merritt Parkway around the Scofield Town Dump. Now city officials say contamination is widespread, and probably due to the common usage of these pesticides by homeowners and farmers before they were banned in the 1980s.
“I think that what the data clearly shows is that it’s not a Stamford problem, it’s not a Scofield Town problem, it’s really a wellwater problem," says Dr. Steve Lo, a medical oncologist at Stamford Hospital.
More than 1500 people have signed up for a pesticide test offered by the city, and since there’s already a waiting list, Lo helped organize an alternate program. Still, Karen DeFalco says the initial fear and denial about water testing hasn’t gone away.
“Some people are definitely concerned, and then a lot of people just turn a blind eye," says DeFalco, who is President of the non-profit North Stamford Concerned Citizens for the Environment.
"I don’t know if it’s because they’re fearful, whether they’ve been living so long and not knowing if their well was contaminated.”
DeFalco and other residents say Stamford should do a better job of publicizing the need for testing, which costs $100 through the city and $165 through the alternate program.
Health department officials for Norwalk, New Canaan, and Greenwich say there are currently no efforts underway to encourage pesticide testing.
Over at the state Department of Health, epidemiologist Sharee Rusnak said she’s presented data at a meeting of local health directors and at a private well symposium.
Health officials at a recent meeting in Stamford said that out of 750 well test results that have been reported, 8 percent showed levels of pesticides that were above action level.
That means prolonged exposure to that water can increase the risk of health problems.
Contaminated water should be treated using a granular activated carbon filter, which oncologist Steve Lo said costs about $1600.
For more on this story, visit the Connecticut Mirror at ctmirror.org.
