City gives free water filters to West Plains homes with contaminated wells

SPOKANE, Wash. — The City of Spokane gave out free water filters to West Plains residents whose wells were contaminated by chemicals from Spokane International Airport.

Nearly 4,000 homes have bad water because of PFAS chemicals used to fight jet fuel fires at the airport. The chemicals got into the groundwater over many years.

“Polluted water in the neighborhood from firefighting operations is serious stuff,” said John Hancock, founder of the West Plains Water Coalition. “The toxicity now in the groundwater of nearly 4,000 rural properties is a serious health concern.”

PFAS chemicals can cause cancer and other health problems. They don’t break down naturally and stay in people’s bodies for a long time.

The city worked with Spokane County and the airport to hand out the filters. They also set up a water station on Garden Springs Road where people can get clean water.

“The city, the county and the airport are working to fulfill our obligation to provide access to clean drinking water,” said Marlene Feist, Spokane Public Works director. “So we are out here providing people with filters and telling them about our fill station on Garden Springs Road that people can also access to get clean water.”

Officials want to find permanent solutions. One option is connecting rural homes to city water lines. The county got a $7.5 million grant to install treatment systems on private wells.

“Some of the permanent options might be connections to municipal water,” Feist said. “The county has a grant for $7.5 million to put in what are called point-of-entry treatment systems. That’s a system that serves all of the water that comes out of an individual private well.”

This was the first time the city handed out filters, but more events are planned. Airport officials are still testing soil and water to see how far the contamination spread.

“This is sort of the start,” Feist said. “The airport has been doing a lot of the work, the science work, investigating the soil and the groundwater to see where the problems are.”

People who missed the event can get filters at City Hall or the Waste to Energy Administration Building.

The contamination affects thousands of families who depend on well water. Officials say they’re committed to helping everyone get clean water while they work on long-term solutions.