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Findings released in Parkview at Wekiva water testing

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From the City of Apopka Public Information Office

The Florida Department of Health (DOH) has determined that water and soil in Apopka’s Parkview at Wekiva subdivision do not violate federal and state allowable contaminant levels and that no health risk was identified.

Soil and water testing was conducted in the neighborhood in December as a result of concerns raised by residents. The Department of Health stated that test results did not indicate any health risk and showed levels below the cleanup target levels for soil and the maximum contaminant levels for water. DOH will remain available to the community as it addresses any remaining concerns associated with this issue.

Testing was conducted as part of a “PACE-EH” investigation. PACE-EH is an acronym for “Protocol for Assessing Community Excellence in Environmental Health.”

“This is good news for Parkview residents who can now have a higher level of comfort regarding their drinking water,” said Apopka Mayor Joe Kilsheimer. “We are confident that the testing was thorough and conclusive.”

Water samples were specifically tested for coliform, nitrite, nitrate, and lead. The results show that the water does not contain any of the tested contaminants above the Maximum Contaminant Level for drinking water as established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Three water samples were taken in the neighborhood on December 7, 2017, and were analyzed at Orange County Utilities’ Central Laboratory. The samples were taken from inside each residence as well as from the water meter in the front yard of each residence. Additionally, soil samples also were taken at each location from the first four inches of soils in each front yard as close to the water meter as possible.

An analysis of the soil samples was completed by Flowers Lab to review the amount of metal contaminants in the soils. The results showed that four of the metals tested (arsenic, cadmium, selenium, and silver) had levels that were undetectable by their search parameters. The other four metals, (mercury, barium, chromium, and lead) had very small trace amounts of each present in the samples. A comparison of the analyzed levels to the Target Clean-up Levels established for residential area per the Florida Administrative Code Chapter 62-777 showed that the test results are significantly lower than the established values.

City of Apopka, Parkview at Wekiva, The Florida Department of Health, Water testing

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