The county emergency services department is trying to get rid of its supply of it chemical firefighting foam, which has been found to contain forever chemicals.

At their meeting Wednesday, county commissioners agreed to pay an Armstrong County company about $13,500 to dispose of the Class B firefighting foam, contingent on the participation of the 12 other Southwestern Pennsylvania counties that make up the Region 13 Task Force under the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency.

McCutcheon Enterprises Inc., of Apollo, is charging the county $12,974 to dispose of the foam, which is kept in a trailer at the Butler Township Volunteer Fire District, and $405 to pick it up. The company is taking the foam to Republic Services’ recycling and waste site in Grandview, Idaho.

The foam contains perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS, which breakdown slowly and can build up in people, animals, groundwater and the environment over time, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

According to the commissioners, fire departments and hazardous materials teams across the country are disposing of foam that contains PFAS.

“We’re looking at non-PFAS foam. There are options,” said Steve Bicehouse, county emergency services director.

Region 13 counties are sharing the disposal cost, but PEMA is not offering money to buy an alternate foam, Bicehouse said. The disposal cost is based on all Region 13 counties disposing of their supplied of the foam, he said.

The county agreement with McCutchen does not include fire departments in the county, he said.

The foam can still be used, he added.

The commissioners ratified hiring attorney Zoe Kecskemethy of Butler as an assistant district attorney to fill a vacancy created by last month’s retirement of Patricia McLean, who was the first assistant district attorney.

A University of Pittsburgh law school graduate, Kecskemethy passed the bar exam last year and has worked as an intern in the district attorney’s office the last few summers, District Attorney Rich Goldinger said, after the meeting.

“As a law student, she conducted hearings under the supervision of an attorney,” Goldinger said. “We knew her, which certainly helps. We’re excited to have her.”

She also worked for Jaffe and Kecskemethy, P.C. in Butler, where her father Joseph Kecskemethy is an attorney.

Her starting pay is $35.80 an hour.

To replace McLean, Mark Lope was promoted to the first assistant position, Goldinger said.

The commissioners also approved advertising an amendment to the Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance that updates the bond requirements for decommissioning solar and wind energy facilities. The commissioners will vote on the amendment at their April 24 meeting.