Family & Home
City of La Crosse starting to test ground water for PFAS
Wisconsin’s DNR has voted this week to restrict the use of firefighting foam that contains dangerous chemicals called PFAS.
That decision comes as La Crosse offers to test water in private wells near the airport, where those chemicals have been discovered in small amounts in city-owned wells.
The problem has only been found in two wells so far, but more than 100 water wells on French Island may be at risk of contamination from PFAS chemicals.
The substance found in firefighting foam apparently seeped into the ground after fire drills conducted years ago at the airport.
People living in a specific testing zone who want their water sampled will get results about a month after the sample is taken.
If the chemicals are in a well, the city will provide bottled water to the family while cleaning takes place.