Water Treatment Facility in Portsmouth Finished

Members of New Hampshire's congressional delegation were at Pease International Tradeport in Portsmouth on Tuesday morning to celebrate the completion of the Grafton Road Drinking Water Treatment Facility.

Construction started for the facility in 2019 as part of an agreement between the city of Portsmouth and the U.S. Air Force after officials closed a major water supply well located in the area. The water from that well contained high levels of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances.

U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-NH, said on Tuesday that every family in the country deserves access to clean drinking water.

"Today, with the Grafton Road Drinking Water Treatment Facility officially coming online, Pease and the Portsmouth community have taken an important step forward towards achieving that goal," Shaheen said.

U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas, D-NH, said seven years after the discovery of PFAS contamination at Pease, the completion of the water treatment facility marks the progress that has been made to identify and mitigate these "forever chemicals."

"Although more work is needed, including stronger federal standards, holding polluters accountable, and upgrading water infrastructure, I am proud of the groundbreaking work being done in New Hampshire and the example the Portsmouth community has set for the rest of the nation," Pappas said.

Also in attendance was U.S. Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-NH; Jennifer Miller, acting assistant secretary of the Air Force for installations, environment and energy; and Andrea Amico, co-founder of Testing for Pease.

The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry is running a health study on the effects of water contaminated with PFAS. Adults and children are needed.

For more information, visit testingforpease.com.

Contact Managing News Editor Kimberley Haas at Kimberley.Haas@townsquaremedia.com or via Twitter @KimberleyHaas.