On Wednesday, 5 March 2025, our Club will welcome Jesse Schlam, City of Fort Collins Senior Environmental Regulatory Specialist, Kathryne Marko, City of Fort Collin Environmental Regulatory Affairs Manager and Leslie Hill, City of Fort Collins, Water Quality Services Director. They will present timely information about the PFAS or “forever” chemicals that have been prominent in the news; those substances that percolate into ground water and take a very long time to go away.
Perfluroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of thousands of man-made chemicals that break down slowly. They have earned the nickname “forever chemicals” due to their persistence in the environment over time. PFAS are synthetically created and resistant to heat, oil, water, and grease. They are used in many consumer products, including clothing, cookware, and firefighting foam. There is rapidly evolving research and regulatory guidance on how to handle PFAS in the environment. Fort Collins Utilities is committed to protecting public health and the environment, and continues to stay up-to-date as new research and guidance emerges. Our speakers will discuss efforts by the Fort Collins Water Utility to identify PFAS substances in our community and what the City is doing to keep PFAS out of our water system.
Jesse Schlam is native to Colorado. He graduated from Fort Lewis College earning two bachelors degrees, one in Sociology and another Modern Languages (Spanish) as well as a minor in Sociocultural Anthropology. He attended CSU for an addition 2 years, taking classes in Environmental Engineering. Since that time, he has worked as a Senior Environmental Regulatory Specialist for the City of Fort Collins for 15 years. He has helped to apply and comply with water regulations in a variety of ways from development review and stakeholder participation to reviewing permit applications and overseeing clean up actions. Jesses will introduce the other speakers.