New State Lab to improve PFAS, toxicology testing, state health officials say | The Mighty 790 KFGO

The new State Lab is under construction on the Capitol grounds in Bismarck on Nov. 21, 2024. (Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)

By: Michael Achterling

BISMARCK, N.D. (North Dakota Monitor) – A new State Lab under construction on the Capitol grounds will give North Dakota expanded capabilities to address public health and environmental concerns, including testing to detect forever chemicals.

North Dakota’s Department of Environmental Quality sends up to 100 samples each year to out-of-state labs to test for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, also known as forever chemicals, said Karl Rockeman, deputy director of the Department of Environmental Quality.

PFAS are widely used chemical components in consumer and industrial products that break down very slowly over time, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. The chemicals have been found in animals and humans and have been linked to harmful health effects.

Rockeman said the amount of PFAS testing required for states is continuing to increase as more information about the compounds becomes known.

“This is an emerging thing so every state is kind of going through something similar,” Rockeman said. 

The new State Lab will allow North Dakota to test for PFAS locally. That could reduce the wait time for results from up to nine months to approximately two to four weeks if the new lab is fully staffed, equipped and certified, according to the department.

North Dakota Lt. Gov. Tammy Miller, chair of the Capitol Grounds Planning Commission, speaks during a commission meeting in Bismarck on Feb. 22, 2024. (Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)

Lt. Gov. Tammy Miller highlighted the PFAS testing capability during an October ceremony that celebrated the placing of the final structural beam of the State Lab.

“We want to establish a regional testing lab here by 2030 because PFAS testing options in this EPA region are very limited,” said Miller, who chaired the North Dakota State Laboratory Steering Committee.

Rockeman said the department has a testing program to look for PFAS in drinking water, regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency.

The department also does periodic screenings at sites such as landfills and wastewater treatment facilities to better understand the scope of PFAS contaminants and how they end up in different water systems, Rockeman said. He added PFAS is also found in firefighting foam.

“PFAS is in a number of products that we use in our homes,” Rockeman said. “Because of that, it ends up in our garbage. It ends up in our wastewater, so that is, of course, a concern.”

While there are hundreds, if not thousands, of PFAS compounds, Rockeman said quality testing can be done on only about 40 different PFAS chemicals nationwide. 

Rockeman said after the department settles into a portion of the new lab, it could provide health officials with some budget savings. 

“It’s not going to be huge compared to all the samples and things we do … but certainly there will be savings there,” he said.

The $70 million State Lab is anticipated to be complete in June 2026. It will house about 50 staff from the Department of Environmental Quality and Department of Health and Human Services.

The new facility also will help the state comply with new EPA rules surrounding the replacement of lead pipes to homes within the next 10 years. Miller said during the October event that the lab already conducts about 1,300 lead and copper tests per year, but that number is expected to increase to 8,000 tests.

The new facility also will allow the Department of Health and Human Services to provide additional toxicology services, which the department says will be essential for diagnosing and managing exposure to harmful substances that could cause significant health problems.