The Navy is requesting permission to sample drinking water obtained from wells near Ault Field, Area 6 Landfill, and Outlying Landing Field (OLF) Coupeville at Naval Air Station (NAS) Whidbey Island for certain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly known as PFAS.
Property owners who drink water from a well on a property located within the sampling area may request sampling at either the open house, by calling 1-844-WHI-PFAS (1-844-944-7327) and leaving a message, or by sending an email to naswi.pfas@jacobs.com. Appointments are currently being scheduled between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. from February 2nd to 9th (additional times available upon request).
If your drinking water is provided by a public water system, the Navy does not need to sample your drinking water.
The Navy has conducted drinking water well sampling near NAS Whidbey Island, and other installations nationwide, to ensure that concentrations of two commonly used and studied per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) are not above 70 parts per trillion (ppt) in drinking water wells, individually or combined, as a result of Navy operations. The Navy provides bottled water for drinking and cooking to any property with a drinking water well the Navy has sampled that contains PFOA and/or PFOS above 70 ppt and does not have an alternate drinking water source available. The Navy will continue to provide bottled water until a long-term solution is implemented.
The Navy began sampling off-base drinking water wells near NAS Whidbey Island for PFAS in November 2016 and has sampled 291 drinking water wells near Ault Field, Outlying Landing Field (OLF) Coupeville, and the Area 6 Landfill, as of December 2023. Of the total 291 wells, samples collected from 18 drinking water wells were above 70 ppt. The Navy is conducting additional drinking water well sampling near the Area 6 Landfill in February 2024 and is offering sampling to property owners in the Ault Field and OLF Coupeville sampling areas whose wells have not been previously sampled by the Navy.
Click the link below for information on each specific area.
The Navy updates property owners and tenants on their results as they become available. Final drinking water sampling results are available online at: https://www.acq.osd.mil/eie/eer/ecc/pfas/map/pfasmap.html to inform the public of the general results in drinking water wells around NAS Whidbey Island. Individual drinking water sample results cannot be linked with the sampled property on this website.
The Navy continues to work directly with property owners, community leaders and other federal, state and local agencies on this important national issue and will keep the community informed while respecting the privacy of individual residents.
The Navy is also conducting on-base PFAS investigations at Area 6 Landfill, Ault Field, OLF Coupeville, and Seaplane Base. For more information on the investigations at Area 6 Landfill, Ault Field, and OLF Coupeville, please click links above. For more information on the on-base investigation at Seaplane Base, please click link below.
If you have any questions, please contact one of the Public Affairs Officers listed below.