Recent soil tests from the Jordan Community Gardens indicate that no volatile organic compounds were detected. Photo Jenny Stewart
The results of soil testing from the Jordan Community Gardens off Hartwell Road are reassuring.
A report from the environmental consulting firm Tetra Tech of Marlborough said detected concentrations of chemicals and metals “were consistent with typical concentrations in near surface New England soils and below regulatory standards that are protective of human health.”
The report stated that no volatile organic compounds were detected in the two samples collected on May 20. Volatile organic compounds include benzene, butanol, acetone, and toluene. In addition, three regulated PFAS compounds were detected “at very low concentrations,” which were “below the values that the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection considers protective of human health and the environment.” The report also noted that “naturally occurring metals, including arsenic, barium, chromium, and lead, were detected within both soil samples. These metals are common and ubiquitous in the natural environment.”
The testing was arranged by the town’s conservation director, Jeffrey Summit, in response to concerns expressed by a few residents who tend garden plots on the Jordan property. The concerns were in response to ongoing cleanup activity of long-standing groundwater contamination at nearby Hanscom Field. That mitigation process has expanded to include per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances known as PFAS.
The water connection at the Jordan gardens is to the municipal system, not wells.
The testing results, which included dozens of pages of detail, were sent to Heidi Porter, Director of Bedford Health and Human Services.
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