CAMBRIDGE, N.Y. (AP) - State officials say contamination from cancer-causing industrial chemicals has been found at an upstate New York business that uses paper mill sludge to produce composting material.
The Water Quality Rapid Response Team, led by the state’s health and environmental conservation agencies, says it found PFOA and PFOS in paper mill sludge, compost and groundwater at CTI Agri-Cycle in the Washington County town of Cambridge, near the Vermont border.
PFOA, or perfluorooctanoic acid, is used in making non-stick products. PFOS, a related chemical, is used in firefighting foam.
State officials say so far no water systems near the business have shown more than the federal limit in PFOA and PFOS contamination, but the investigation is continuing..
A high level of PFOA was found last year in drinking water in nearby Hoosick Falls and Petersburgh.
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