Bennington

## Summary

Both public water systems serving Bennington tested clean under the EPA's fifth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 5), with no PFAS compounds detected above the EPA Minimum Reporting Level in either system. That result stands in notable contrast to Bennington's broader contamination history: in the mid-2010s, PFOA released by the former ChemFab fabric coating plant, later acquired by Saint-Gobain, was found to have contaminated hundreds of private drinking water wells across Bennington and North Bennington. The public water systems draw from sources outside the main contamination plume and were not significantly affected, which is why they show clean results while the surrounding community has lived with a serious PFAS problem. A settlement with Saint-Gobain funded extensions of municipal water lines to many affected private well owners, and remediation work continues as investigators identify new areas of contamination.

## What the data shows

Under UCMR 5, the EPA required water systems to test for 29 PFAS compounds and other contaminants between 2023 and 2025. The Bennington Water Department (PWSID VT0005016), which serves roughly 13,000 residents, returned non-detects across all 29 compounds tested, meaning no PFAS was found at or above the EPA Minimum Reporting Level. The North Bennington Water Department (PWSID VT0005017), serving approximately 1,700 residents, produced the same result: all 29 compounds non-detect across every sample collected. Neither system had any compound exceed a federal limit.

## What residents should know

Customers of the Bennington Water Department and the North Bennington Water Department can take some reassurance from these results, but the data applies only to those municipal supplies. Residents who rely on private wells, particularly in areas near the former ChemFab site, should not assume their water shares the municipal system's outcome; private wells are not covered by UCMR 5 testing and may still be affected by the contamination plume. Anyone on a private well in the Bennington area should contact the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation or their local health department for guidance on testing. Customers of either municipal system with questions about their specific supply should contact their water utility directly for the most current monitoring information.