Bob Quarantino and his wife moved into their home in 1993, two months after the first homes in the Pebble Creek community were built.
He saw Indian School Road turn into a four-lane road and expand right up against his backyard fence when developers built the nearby Safeway.
The north Goodyear resident says his water has also changed over the years.
“I have no idea what happened to my water,” the 83-year-old said. “All I can tell you is that when I take out those filters, it's terracotta color. Our water pressure used to be really good, too. In the last several years, it's been bad.”
Quarantino uses a reverse osmosis system for his water. He fears the terracotta coloring might be abnormal for his initial primary filter, and he also thinks his second sink filter looks strange.
Michael McDaniel, Daily Independent
He filters his water because he knows he should.
West Valley residents learned in recent years that a chemical known as polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, considered a “forever chemical,” was in high concentrations in sites near Luke Air Force Base north of the community.
The forever chemical doesn’t break down over time and can build up in the environment and blood of humans.
According to the state, the chemical has been detected around Luke and other areas and was used as a firefighting agent for highly volatile military equipment and planes. However, most wells were safely below the Environmental Protection Agency’s established standard for concentrations for wells.
It wasn’t until March of this year that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency proposed levels for PFOA and PFOS to be four parts per trillion (ppt) each. PFOS and PFOA are part of a larger group of chemicals under the PFAS family. Years prior, it was 40 ppt and before that, 70, the standard continually lowered each year with advanced testing and study on the impacts of the chemical.
According to state records, five Goodyear and Litchfield Park area water wells exceed Environmental Protection Agency standards for a cancer-causing “forever chemical.” The state outlined a way to move forward with the Daily Independent.
Litchfield Park and the Richmond statement
According to the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, Liberty Utilities’ water well by Luke near El Mirage and Camelback roads, considered unincorporated Litchfield Park, shows a high concentration of PFOS at 170 ppt, 42 times the newly established EPA standard of 4 ppt.
Arizona Department of Environmental Services
Arizona Department of Environmental Services
Arizona Department of Environmental Services
Arizona Department of Environmental Services
Tested in 2021, the well also shows traces of PFOA 12 times the standard at 50 ppt. Tarah Smith-Mattie, a resident of Litchfield Park, said she was shocked to learn about the high concentrations in the Liberty Utilities water well.
“I was not aware of this. I don’t remember seeing anything from Liberty regarding this,” she said. “I am going to switch to bottled water. This is very concerning.”
Litchfield Park resident Margie Carrillo said she vaguely knew about it but didn’t know what to make of it when she bought her home. Her developer, Richmond Homes, made her sign a liability waiver before purchasing. The release indicated there was no current standard for concentration and that the Air Force was investigating their impact around the base.
“The Air Force is actively investigating the extent and impact of PFOS and PFOA in firefighting foam used at Luke Air Force Base and has determined that it may have impacted the water supply wells that provide drinking water to your property,” wrote Brig. Gen. Gregor Kreuder, in her Richmond statement. “While there are no current drinking water standards for these substances, the EPA developed the Lifetime Health Advisory for PFOS and PFOA.”
Michael McDaniel, Daily Independent
Kreuder said at least one of the water samples from area wells exceeded the EPA’s 2021 standard. Other wells also show notable high concentrations of PFAS chemicals.
According to the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, Liberty Utilities’ water well in east Litchfield Park, just north of Goodyear, showed concentrations of PFAS-related chemicals in a 2022 sampling.
PFOA's in the Litchfield well result was 5.4, slightly above the 4 ppt standard. Northeast in Glendale, Liberty’s well results for PFOS and PFOA were 6.3 and 8.5, respectively. Another Glendale Liberty well showed results for PFOS and PFOA at 15 and 17, respectively.
Goodyear denial and receipt
According to an Arizona Department of Environmental Quality water system report, Goodyear was once a buyer of water from some wells, including the high-concentration well.
Arizona Department of Environmental Quality
Arizona Department of Environmental Quality
Goodyear Water Services Deputy Director Todd Carpenter denied Goodyear water comes from any of the mentioned wells.
“The wells referenced are owned, operated and maintained by the private water company Liberty Utilities,” he said in a statement to the Daily Independent. “The city of Goodyear does not source water from those wells.”
According to Liberty President Moses Thompson, the utility company has an interconnect agreement with the city of Goodyear.
“Liberty currently has an interconnect agreement with the city of Goodyear that allows Liberty to take an additional 700 gallons per minute at 65 psi to address increased customer water usage due to high temperatures,” he wrote to the Arizona Corporation Commission in a Sept. 1 letter.
Thompson also told the ACC his company has connections and provides effluent water to the following Goodyear stakeholders: the city of Goodyear, Pebble Creek Golf Course and Palm Valley Golf Course.
Quarantino told the Daily Independent that Liberty Utilities handles the water in his Goodyear-based Pebble Creek community, and he wasn't happy with the service. In recent years, he said it's been rough dealing with the economy, rising utility costs and other issues amid some of life's big challenges.
"She passed away October 17, 2021," he said. "We were married over 50 years."
Looking ahead
Earlier in the year, Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs signed a bipartisan appropriations bill earmarking $5 million in funding for PFAS research and cleanup.
"ADEQ’s work plan for the $5 million includes funding for public outreach, hydrogeologic investigations in counties with higher PFAS detections, water quality sampling, and treatment construction assistance for both large and small water systems in targeted areas with PFAS contamination concerns," wrote ADEQ in a statement to the Daily Independent.
According to the state, future plans may involve constructing completely new wells and entirely eradicating some water systems.
The ADEQ is taking a proactive approach, outlined in a pdf on the Daily Independent's website. The Daily Independent will do an in-depth story on their plan in the upcoming week. The city of Litchfield Park was contacted on Sept. 13 and 14, but no comment was furnished to the Daily Independent.
Michael McDaniel can be reached at mmcdaniel@iniusa.org. We’d like to invite our readers to submit their civil comments, pro or con, on this issue. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org.
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