Years after PFAS contamination forced Newburgh to stop drawing drinking water from Washington Lake, new research examining the social impacts shows some residents continue to grapple with health concerns and distrust of their drinking water. 

 

The findings were shared Saturday during a community event at Placita La Amistad, where researchers, environmental groups and residents gathered to discuss PFAS exposure and prepare for an upcoming Restoration Advisory Board meeting with Stewart Air National Guard. 

 

Lily Rubino conducted the research as part of her Ph.D. at the University of Cambridge, asking Newburgh residents how PFAS affected them and what they believed should be done to repair the harm. She said the research revealed effects ranging from concerns about future health problems to residents continuing to buy bottled water because they no longer trust what comes from their taps. 

 

“A lot of people talked about how they weren’t sure if the PFAS made them sick or people they love sick, but they were really worried about possible future health impacts,” Rubino, who grew up in the Hudson Valley, said.

 

Parents interviewed for the research described worrying about whether exposure could eventually affect their children, according to Rubino. Some parents expressed heartbreak over having given their children water they believed was safe and later learning they may have exposed them to PFAS, she said. 

 

That uncertainty took a mental and emotional toll on residents, with the possibility that health problems could emerge years later becoming a worry that “follows you wherever you go,” Rubino said.

 

The research found that some residents lost trust in their tap water. Despite Newburgh switching its drinking water source to the Catskill Aqueduct, Rubino said some of the people she interviewed continue to buy bottled water. 

 

“If you were drinking water and you thought it was okay and then all of a sudden it’s not, and you realize for decades you were drinking toxic chemicals and giving it to your kids, it’s gonna take a lot for your trust in that water to be built back up,” Rubino said.

 

Relying on bottled water has created an additional expense for some residents while raising concerns about microplastics and plastic pollution, according to Rubino. Beyond addressing those harms, Rubino said that residents told her they want greater government accountability through measures such as an apology, reimbursement for water bills, free health monitoring and additional investment in the community. 

 

The health concerns documented in Rubino’s research were also the subject of a separate national study presented at Saturday’s event. Elisa Grimm, who works on the CDC-funded Multi-Site PFAS Health Study (MSS) at the University of Albany College of Integrated Health Sciences, said Newburgh and Hoosick Falls in Rensselaer County were two of the New York communities included in the study. Participants provided information about where they lived, the water they drank and whether they filtered it and had their blood tested for PFAS and health markers associated with some of the potential effects researchers have examined in connection with PFAS exposure, including thyroid function, cholesterol and the immune system. 

 

Grimm said the results are preliminary and provide initial information on correlations between PFAS exposure and health but cautioned that the findings released so far combine data from all eight study sites nationwide. Researchers are now conducting more site-specific analysis to better understand the findings for communities with different PFAS exposures, including Newburgh, according to Grimm.

 

Councilmember Robert McLymore said his own experience reflects how little he knew about the city’s PFAS contamination before becoming an elected official. 

 

  “I’ve lived here all my life,” McLymore said. “Didn’t have no clue that PFOS was in our water until I got on the council and I heard something about it.”

After learning about the contamination, McLymore had his blood tested and said the results showed contaminants in his system. 

 

Environmental organizations at the event also sought to turn the research into greater community participation ahead of the next Restoration Advisory Board meeting.

 

Marianne Marichal of the Quassaick Creek Watershed Alliance said the latest delay in the Stewart cleanup process has strengthened efforts to get more residents involved. She encouraged community members to attend the Oct. 21 RAB meeting at the Newburgh Free Library.

 

“They need to hear from those people who are adversely affected by this and that’s all of us who live here,” Marichal said. 

 

Organizers also used art, music and children’s activities to make the discussion accessible beyond a traditional research presentation. Community members created artwork that organizers intend to bring to the October meeting, including a plastic water bottle sculpture incorporating drawings of residents’ memories of clean water. 

 

Mariel Sol, founder of Spanish Cafecito, tailored her children’s programming around water, using bilingual songs and a story about the water cycle. She said the activities were intended to help children understand where their water comes from.

 

“I especially chose “Pequeña Gota De Lluvia,” which is about the cycle of water, to give the children a perspective that it is not just that we open the faucet and it [water] is there,” Sol said. “Where does it come from? It’s in nature.”

 

For Rubino, restoring the affected water sources is only one part of addressing the harm residents described.

 

“It’s not just technically cleaning up the stuff,” Rubino said. “It’s addressing all of these other broader harms.