Forever chemicals in water report leaves many unanswered questions
The dangers of 'forever chemicals', known as PFAS, have been known for more than a quarter of a century, yet NSW water authorities could not join the dots to protect our water supplies.
We now know for certain that some Blue Mountains residents may have been drinking water with elevated levels of the cancer-causing chemical for up to 32 years.
Further, authorities disconnected Medlow Dam and Greaves Creek Dam from the water supply only last August after initially claiming there were no 'no known PFAS hotspots in the catchment' in the wake of a damning Herald investigation.
Yet concerns about PFAS in firefighting material were voiced in 1998. The world's scientific community has been waving red flags since, and stringent new drinking limits are under consideration in Australia.
Now an initial report prepared for WaterNSW by engineering firm Jacobs Group confirmed that the contamination could have occurred as early as 1992 when a petrol tanker crashed on the Great Western Highway near Medlow Bath. The WaterNSW report also suggests a 2002 vehicle crash and the Medlow Bath Rural Fire Brigade Station could be potential sources of the contamination.
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The findings back up the work of Carrie Fellner, our investigative journalist who has covered the impact of the chemicals for more than 12 years. In August 2024, she reported Sydney Water confirmed forever chemicals had been detected across drinking water supplies. A week or so later, Sydney Water quietly closed a feeder dam in the Blue Mountains. She revealed this month the chemicals had been discovered in the Jamieson Reservoir on Cousins Lane at Leura and the Shipley Reservoir, near Blackheath.
Following the initial report, the EPA has recommended a detailed site investigation should be undertaken consistent with the National Environment Protection Measure 1999. While the disconnections remain, NSW Health and Sydney Water have said drinking water in the Blue Mountains meets existing Australian drinking water guidelines and is safe to drink. They give this assurance knowing full well that new drinking water standards are on the horizon that will not be so generous.
Jon Dee, convener of the local STOP PFAS action group and a former Australian of the Year for his environmental work including co-founding Planet Ark in the 1990s, said the report left key questions unanswered. 'They still cannot tell us when the PFAS contamination of our drinking water began,' Dee said. 'They still cannot tell us how high the PFAS levels have been in the tap water that we've been drinking. They still can't tell us how long we've been drinking toxic tap water, and yet they insist that our tap water has been safe.'
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