Town board, county health panel support proposed Stella PFAS study

The Stella Town Board and the Oneida County Board of Health have agreed to support a University of Wisconsin environmental epidemiologist’s effort to secure financing for a study focused on examining routes of PFAS exposure in a highly impacted community.

Dr. Amy Schultz secured letters of support from both boards last month, following a pair of presentations.

According to her grant proposal, Schultz is seeking funding from the National Institute of Health (NIH) to conduct a study that would involve testing the blood of 160 town of Stella residents for 38 different PFAS compounds. The blood tests of the 160 volunteers would be compared against the results of statewide PFAS study of 605 adults, according to the overview.

After that, a second phase of the project would involve a closer look at a subset of 40 residents whose blood contains high levels of the 38 compounds.

PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) are a group of human-made chemicals used for decades in numerous products, including non-stick cookware, fast food wrappers and stain-resistant sprays. These contaminants have made their way into the environment through accidental spills of PFAS-containing materials, discharges of PFAS-containing wastewater to treatment plants and certain types of firefighting foams, according to the DNR. 

These chemicals are known to accumulate in the human body, posing several risks to human health including certain cancers, liver damage and decreased fertility. 

The Town Stella, located approximately 11 miles east of Rhinelander, has been the focus of scientific interest since late 2022 when a DNR-directed testing project led to the discovery of significant PFAS contamination in a number of private drinking wells.

Some of the readings out of Stella are among the highest in the state, according to the DNR.

PFAS contamination has also been found in some bodies of water near Stella, the DNR has confirmed.

According to the proposal, a goal of the proposed study is to evaluate sources and routes of ongoing PFAS exposure in Stella. 

This would involve measuring PFAS in drinking water, dust and soil as well as an examination of associations between environmental PFAS and human PFAS exposure, according to the proposal.

Another question the study would seek to answer is whether Polyfluoroalkyl phosphate esters (PAPs), a PFAS precursor mainly used in paper products, in the environment are a source of human PFAS exposure.

According to the proposal, this would be the first study of PAPs in a real-world setting.

“Findings will provide evidence towards whether or not to monitor and regulate PFAS precursors, such as PAPs,” the outline states.

If the proposal is approved by the NIH, funding would be released in May or June, according to the outline. 

A community advisory board for the study would meet starting in early summer and recruitment/blood testing would take place in late summer or fall.

If the study is funded, all individual PFAS results will remain private, Schultz stressed.

Names will not appear with PFAS levels in any study findings and individual PFAS results will not be shared with insurance or health care providers. 

“No one will know what your PFAS levels are unless you tell them,” the outline states.

“Research is separate from healthcare. If you want your doctor to know your results, you will need to share your results with them.”

According to her proposal, Schultz has more than nine years experience leading human health research studies and led a statewide PFAS study on 605 adults.

Heather Schaefer may be reached at [email protected].