LANSING, Mich. (WOOD) — Gov. Rick Snyder is launching a task force to organize the response to the likely carcinogen found in wells in Belmont and elsewhere in Michigan.
Snyder signed an executive directive Monday creating the Michigan PFAS Action Response Team. Its goal is to “ensure a comprehensive, cohesive and timely response to the continued mitigation” of the chemical, a Monday release said. MPART will coordinate work by local, state and federal officials.
“To safeguard Michiganders from this emerging contaminant, it’s critical that responding agencies at all levels are effectively communicating and coordinating efforts,” Snyder said in a statement. “This team will be instrumental in establishing protocols and best practices that will allow all partners to comprehensively address these contaminants across Michigan.”
>>PDF: Executive directive creating MPART
The task force will be headed up by retired Michigan Chief Deputy Attorney General Carol Issacs, who was also previously a critical care nurse. Dr. David Savitz, who is a professor of epidemiology at Brown University in Rhode Island, will be the academic consultant. Members of the team will come from the state Departments of Environmental Quality; Health and Human Services; Military and Veterans Affairs; and Agriculture and Rural Development.
>>Online: MPART webpage
PFAS used to be found in the Scotchgard that Rockford-based Wolverine Worldwide used to waterproof shoes. Wolverine waste was dumped along House Street NE in Plainfield Township, and it’s now blamed for contaminating wells over a mile away. The DEQ is looking into reports of dozens of locations in Kent County where Wolverine waste may have been dumped. Cleanup of sites along House Street continues.
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