To date, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) and Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) have sampled more than 3270 private residential wells and 108 non-community public wells (i.e., small businesses, churches, schools) in the east metro area for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Areas where sampling has taken place:
- Afton
- Cottage Grove
- Denmark Township
Grey Cloud Island Township - Lake Elmo
- Lakeland
- Lakeland Shores
- Maplewood
- Newport
- Oakdale
- St. Paul Park
- West Lakeland Township
- Woodbury
- Parts of northern Dakota County, immediately adjacent to the Mississippi River
Use our interactive map to see where the MPCA and MDH have sampled private wells.
Wells tested and identified with a green symbol showed no or low levels of PFAS. Wells tested and marked with a pink symbol showed elevated levels of PFAS the MDH issued the well owner a well water advisory.
If your property is within the priority sampling area outlined by the dashed line on the map, and you have a private drinking water well, you can request to have your water tested using our online form.
The MPCA and MDH are working through the list of sampling requests as we are able based on current resources. We are experiencing a high volume of requests at this time and will address requests as soon as we are able.
How the state decides where to monitor
Private wells are selected for sampling and monitoring mainly based on the following criteria:
- How close they are to known PFAS sources
- Understanding of the geology and how groundwater is moving
- Previous sampling results
Well sampling is the most intensive — meaning all or most of the wells in that area are sampled frequently — in areas where:
- PFAS concentrations are the highest
- The geology is complicated by subsurface features
- PFAS distribution patterns are unpredictable or concentrations are increasing over time
What if my property is outside the priority sampling area?
If your property is outside the priority sampling area, you can contact a private lab and pay to have your water tested. Please note that MPCA and MDH will be glad to help you interpret your results, but no decisions regarding drinking water advisories or a provision of alternate drinking water (such as bottled water, treatment, or connection to city water) will be based on privately collected water samples.
If your sample indicates levels of PFAS that could be of possible health concern, the state will re-sample your water to confirm the results before taking any actions.
Very few private laboratories will accept samples to test for PFAS from individual homeowners. To locate a lab that does, you can use the MDH’s accredited laboratory search feature and follow these steps:
- Select the “Customized Searches” tab.
- Use the drop-down menu for “Analyte” [in the section labeled “All Other Programs and Test Parameters”] and select “Perfluorobutyric acid (pfba)”
- Click the box next to “Accepts samples from private home owners.”
- Click the “Search” box.
- Results will be displayed in the table at the bottom of the page.
You will need to contact the laboratory directly to get information on prices and the list of PFCs they test for. Most labs test for a list of 12-14 PFAS, many of which are not typically detected in the east metro area. Be sure the lab you select tests for the following seven PFAS typically found in the east metro area. Note that depending on the lab, these chemicals may be referred to by any of the names listed below:
- PFBA — perfluorobutyric acid, perfluorobutanoic acid, perfluorobutanoate, or perfluorobutyrate
- PFBS — perfluorobutane sulfonate or perfluorobutane sulfonic acid
- PFPeA — perfluoropentanoic acid or perfluoropentanoate
- PFHxA — perfluorohexanoic acid or perfluorohexanoate
- PFHxS — perfluorohexane sulfonate or perfluorohexane sulfonic acid
- PFOA — perfluorooctanoic acid or perfluorooctanoate
- PFOS — perfluorooctane sulfonate or perfluorooctane sulfonic acid
Another option is to contact a local environmental consulting firm and have them collect a sample as they may be able to use labs not available to individual homeowners. You will still want to confirm that the list they test for includes the seven PFAS listed above.
If you choose to test your water independently and have questions about the results, you can contact the MDH at health.hazard@state.mn.us for help.
More information
For more information about 3M settlement activities, visit our East Metro | 3M PFAS contamination page or the Minnesota 3M PFAS Settlement site.