After the municipality of Zwijndrecht had established worrying concentrations of PFOS on its territory, the neighboring municipality of Beveren also had soil samples taken and examined at four locations in residential areas.
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The results are now available for three locations. ‘As could be expected, we also found PFOS in the soil everywhere,’ says mayor Marc Van de Vijver (CD&V). ‘Fortunately, the results show that the pollution in Beveren is less than in Zwijndrecht.’
The remediation standards for residential areas were not exceeded in any of the three soil samples. The PFOS concentrations were above the standards for agricultural and nature reserves, which are about five times lower. Results of measurements in groundwater are expected at the end of this month.
‘In any case, additional research is planned,’ says Van de Vijver. ‘For example, blood samples will be taken from people who live within a radius of three kilometers from 3M, a human biomonitoring program will be started and additional soil samples have been taken on behalf of 3M in the wider area.’
The mayor says that his municipality will discuss the results with Karl Vrancken, the Flemish contract holder for tackling PFOS contamination. ‘If necessary, additional steps will be taken.’
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