PFAS contamination of mains water (FOI)

​Request

The Environment Minister Steve Luce and the Health Minister Tom Binet have recently been given information about blood contamination of mains water drinking islanders by the individual types of PFAS that were spilled on the plume land at St Ouen. The individual PFAS which were spilled on the land are the same individual PFAS which have been found in blood. 

A

Please provide the names of the advisors that Mr Binet and Mr Luce will be consulting with, following this information that they have been given.

B

Please confirm the qualifications of these officers and advisors, particularly in terms of how those qualifications pertain to advising on the course of action following notification of blood contamination by PFAS pollution.

C

In October 2022, then Environment Minister Jonathan Renouf was provided information regarding islanders finding PFAS contamination in their blood, following drinking of mains water. Please can you check emails to see who JR sought advice from following this report, and what specific advice was given to him. I would like to see all the email between JR and his advisors on the topic of PFAS. Please also search PFOA, PFOS, PFHxS as these terms are all relevant to the topic and may have been or be used interchangeably. 

I would like to understand the workings Health and the Environment departments, and which officers and advisors form their sphere of influence.

D

Please provide a map (family tree style - as I've seen for other departments) of all top level employees of the Health and Environment departments, with job title, and managerial position, so that I can understand who holds the most authority in the departments. 

Response

A

Deputy Binet has consulted on PFAS in blood with Professor Peter Bradley, Director of Public Health and the Deputy Director of Health. They are supported by public health officers and the PFAS Scientific Advisory Panel.   

Deputy Luce has consulted on PFAS in the environment with the following officers in Infrastructure and Environment: the Head of Land Resource Management and the Environment Manager (Water and Air) from Natural Environment have been consulted on the monitoring of PFAS in water and PFAS in the wider island environment. The Acting Regulation Standards Manager (Food and Plant Security) from Regulation has been consulted on PFAS in public water. Arcadis Consulting have been supporting the Natural Environment Officers on the hydrogeological survey of St Ouen’s Bay and Pont Marquet.

B

Professor Peter Bradley is a medically qualified doctor registered as a specialist in public health and general practice on the General Medical Register.  

The Scheduled Public Authority has determined that to provide further names and details of qualifications would breach the privacy of the individuals and is therefore exempt under Article 25 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011. The Government of Jersey is satisfied that all Officers have the necessary qualifications and / or experience to be dealing with these matters.       

Information about the Scientific Advisory Panel and the membership is available on the PFAS website. Please see the following link:

PFAS in Jersey (gov.je)​

C

Please find attached correspondence between Deputy Renouf and his advisors relating to the topic of PFAS. 

Correspondence from Deputy Renouf_Redacted.pdf

Correspondence to Deputy Renouf_Redacted.pdf​

Please note that correspondence to the Minister and from the Minister are shown in separate documents.

Personal information within the documents has been redacted in accordance with Article 25 (Personal Information) of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011. 

D

The information requested, is provided below.

Public Health 

                                                                                                        ↓

                                                                                                       ↓

Infrastructure and Environment  

​

Article applied 

Article 25 - Personal information

(1) Information is absolutely exempt information if it constitutes personal data of which the applicant is the data subject as defined in the Data Protection (Jersey) Law 2005.

(2) Information is absolutely exempt information if –

(a) it constitutes personal data of which the applicant is not the data subject as defined in the Data Protection (Jersey) Law 2005; and

(b) its supply to a member of the public would contravene any of the data protection principles, as defined in that Law.