A forever chemical treatment system installed last week at Kalispell's Grandview Wells site is expected to be operational in the coming days.

Testing done in July found one of the two Grandview Wells to contain forever chemical levels twice the limit established by the Environmental Protection Agency in April 2024. 

Forever chemicals, scientifically known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, were first detected in Kalispell’s public water supply during sample testing in March and June of 2022. The Armory Well, which sits next to a former armory and is near Kalispell’s airport, contained trace amounts of PFOS, part of the PFAS family.  

Over a year later, in July 2023, the Armory Well was sampled again along with the two wells at the Grandview site, located by Flathead Valley Community College. Forever chemicals were detected in all three wells.   

The EPA unveiled federal regulations on six types of commonly found forever chemicals in public water supplies in April. A PFOS limit was established at four parts per trillion and PFHxS, another forever chemical found in the Grandview and Armory wells, was set at 10 parts per trillion.  

During the latest round of sampling conducted in July 2024, both wells at the Grandview site and the Armory Well saw levels of forever chemicals detected. One of the Grandview wells detected levels at around eight parts per trillion. 

How PFAS is entering the Grandview Well remains unknown, and Public Works Director Susie Turner said that the long-term goal is for the contaminated wells to eventually be replaced.  

Kalispell is one of two communities in Montana to detect forever chemicals in the drinking water supply. The other is Hamilton.

Over the past three weeks, the city installed 12 treatment units at the Grandview site, according to a recent report from City Manager Doug Russel. The pressurized filtration systems are being rented out from WaterSurplus, an Illinois-based water quality treatment service. Turner said that the city may eventually own the system.  

WaterSurplus Senior Vice President of Municipal Water Treatment and PFAS expert Jim Groose said that units use a treatment method called anion exchange, where water passes through a positively charged resin that latches onto the negatively charged PFAS compounds.   

The units will filter water at 1,700 gallons a minute, according to Groose. Turner said that while the well’s flow rate will experience a slight decrease, there will be no effect on water pressure coming through residential and commercial service lines.  

Groose said the resin will filter the chemicals for around two to three years before the resin needs to be replaced.  

A structure around the currently exposed vessels will be constructed by the fall to keep the resin from freezing through the winter, according to Turner.  

“Shout out to the Kalispell water crew for their time and dedication to work with contractors and consultants to bring on a treatment unit in a couple months, where it typically it takes a year or years to do,” she said. “Moved mountains. I just hope the public really, really appreciates their effort.” 

Forever chemicals came into widespread use in the 1940s before being phased out, but could often be found on non-stick cookware, waterproof clothing, and other commercial and industrial use products. 

The nickname forever chemicals came from their resistance to high temperatures.  

“These compounds, a carbon fluoride bond, is one of the strongest covalent bonds in nature,” Groose said. 

PFAS was also used in firefighting foam owing to its ability to suppress fire without breaking down. 

The chemicals, which are highly soluble, commonly infiltrate public water supplies through spillage from commercial and industrial facilities, according to the EPA.  

Ingestion of forever chemicals has led to adverse effects to reproductive health and child development, and results in an increased risk to types of cancers. 

“A little bit of exposure over time builds up because your body doesn’t break it down and can’t eliminate it,” Groose said.  

According to Turner, the project is being funded through several emerging contaminant grant programs that provide full loan forgiveness. The cost of the units' delivery was $289,000 with a total rental cost of $28,000 a month.  

The city raised its water fund by $12 million for fiscal year 2025 to address the forever chemicals in the public drinking water supply, which will be funded by grants.  

Groose emphasized that the treatment has been widely tested, with 50 to 100 anion exchange treatment systems currently operating in the United States.  

“The good news is Kalispell is ahead of the curve,” Groose said. “I think they're doing a good job for the city.”   

Reporter Jack Underhill can be reached at [email protected] and 758-4407.