Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS,
can be found in those items and hundreds of other household
products. the chemicals have made their way into our showers,
sinks and drinking glasses — a 2023 study detected PFAS in
nearly half of the nation’s tap water. … For the first time,
the Environmental Protection Agency is regulating PFAS. This
month, the E.P.A. announced that it would require municipal
water systems to remove six forever chemicals from tap
water. Lisa Friedman, a reporter on the Climate desk at
The New York Times, wrote about the new rules.
On Friday, the Environmental Protection Agency designated two
types of “forever chemicals” as hazardous substances under the
federal Superfund law. The move will make it easier for the
government to force the manufacturers of these chemicals,
called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances or PFAS, to shoulder
the costs of cleaning them out of the environment.
… Although the EPA’s new restrictions are
groundbreaking, they only apply to a portion of the nation’s
extensive PFAS contamination problem. That’s because drinking
water isn’t the only way Americans are exposed to PFAS … In
Texas, a group of farmers whose properties were contaminated
with PFAS from fertilizer are claiming the manufacturer should
have done more to warn buyers about the dangers of its
products.
State Sen. Anthony J. Portantino, who represents Pasadena, has
authored a bill mandating the study of microplastics’ health
impacts in drinking water. The Senate Environmental Quality
Committee approved the bill this week. By filing SB
1147, Portantino seeks to emphasize the need for further
research and action in addressing the pervasive presence of
microplastics in various environmental elements.
… The bill’s provisions include a requirement for all
water-bottling plants producing bottled water for sale to
provide an annual report to the State Department of Public
Health’s Food and Drug branch on microplastic levels found in
their source water. This data, as mandated by the bill, aims to
enhance transparency and consumer awareness regarding the
presence of microplastics in bottled water, a product consumed
widely across California.
Rosana Monge clutched her husband’s death certificate and an
envelope of his medical records as she approached the
microphone and faced members of the water utility board on a
recent Monday in this city in southeast New Mexico. “I
have proof here of arsenic tests — positive on him, that were
done by the Veterans Administration,” she testified about
her husband, whose 2023 records show he had been diagnosed with
“exposure to arsenic” before his death in February at age 79.
“What I’m asking is for a health assessment of the community.”
… Naturally occurring in the soil in New Mexico, arsenic
seeps into the groundwater used for drinking. In water, arsenic
has no taste, odor or color — but can be removed with
treatment. Over time, it can cause a variety of health
problems, including cancer, diabetes and heart disease,
endangering the lives of people in this low-income and
overwhelmingly Latino community.
Nutrient (nitrogen [N] and phosphorus [P] chemistry)
downgradient from onsite wastewater treatment system (OWTS) was
evaluated with a groundwater study in the area surrounding
Elizabeth Lake, the largest of three sag lakes within the Santa
Clara River watershed of Los Angeles County, California.
Elizabeth Lake is listed on the “303 (d) Impaired Waters List”
for excess nutrients and is downgradient from more than 600
OWTS. The primary objective of this study was to develop a
conceptual hydrogeological model to determine if discharge from
OWTS is transported into shallow groundwater within the
Elizabeth Lake subwatershed and contributes nutrients to
Elizabeth Lake in excess of the total maximum daily load
limit.
In an effort to protect more than 5 million Californians from a
cancer-causing contaminant, state regulators today set a new
standard that is expected to increase the cost of water for
many people throughout the state. The State Water Resources
Control Board unanimously approved the nation’s first drinking
water standard for hexavalent chromium, which is found
naturally in some California groundwater as well as water
contaminated by industries. Now water suppliers will be forced
to install costly treatment to limit the chemical in water to
no more than 10 parts per billion — equivalent to about 10
drops in an Olympic-sized swimming pool.
A new lawsuit filed by public drinking water systems in
California against manufacturers of toxic “forever chemicals”
is among the first to cite new Biden administration regulations
that set strict limits for the chemicals in drinking water. The
Orange County Water District and more than a dozen other
California water utilities filed the lawsuit in Los Angeles
federal court on Friday against seven manufacturers of per- and
polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, including Dynax America
Corp. and Arkema Inc. The lawsuit accuses the manufacturers of
negligence and of creating a nuisance by contaminating water
with PFAS, and seeks money to remediate that contamination.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency [last week] unveiled
the first nationwide limits on dangerous “forever chemicals” in
drinking water, setting standards that will have sweeping,
costly effects throughout California. … In California
alone, traces of the compounds have been detected in water
systems serving more than 25 million people, nearly a third in
disadvantaged communities, according to an analysis by
the Natural Resources Defense Council.
… the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency [on
Wednesday] announced the final National Primary Drinking Water
Regulation establishing the first national legally enforceable
drinking water standards … for six per- and
polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), commonly referred to as
“forever chemicals” …. actions required for public water
systems under the final rule are likely going to require
significant investment of money, time, and human effort.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday announced
the first federal limits on PFAS — manmade “forever
chemicals” linked to cancer, organ damage and other health
issues — in the nation’s drinking water. The regulation,
which was initially proposed in 2023, requires water systems to
reduce levels of six of the most studied types of PFAS to
the lowest levels that can be reliably measured with
testing. … The Bay Area’s drinking water generally
has low levels of PFAS because large water systems in the
region get most of their drinking water from pristine sources
in the Sierra or local reservoirs in regional parks, according
to researchers who study toxic chemicals in drinking water. The
city of San Francisco, for instance, gets most of its water
from Hetch Hetchy, a reservoir north of Yosemite Valley.
California lawmakers want to establish the state’s position on
environmental health, taking a first step Monday in their
proactive approach to ensure processes for the state’s
environmental management remains secure, regardless of any
federal changes. … The Los Angeles Democrat is
propositioning a constitutional amendment that would enshrine
into law the Californian’s right to clean air, water and the
environment. Assembly Constitutional Amendment 16,
authored by Bryan, passed Monday out of the Assembly Natural
Resources Committee and into his chamber’s Appropriations
Committee. It must pass both houses by at least two-thirds and
then secure a majority vote at the polls.
They’re in makeup, dental floss and menstrual products. They’re
in nonstick pans and takeout food wrappers. Same with rain
jackets and firefighting equipment, as well as pesticides and
artificial turf on sports fields. They’re PFAS: a class of
man-made chemicals called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances.
They are also called “forever chemicals” because the bonds in
their chemical compounds are so strong they don’t break down
for hundreds to thousands of years, if at all. They’re also in
our water. A new study of more than 45,000 water samples
around the world found that about 31 percent of groundwater
samples tested that weren’t near any obvious source of
contamination had PFAS levels considered harmful to human
health by the Environmental Protection Agency.
Nearly half of US prisons draw water from sources likely
contaminated with toxic PFAS “forever chemicals”, new research
finds. At least around 1m people incarcerated in the US,
including 13,000 juveniles, are estimated to be housed in the
prisons, and they are especially vulnerable to the dangerous
chemicals because there is little they can do to protect
themselves, said Nicholas Shapiro, a study co-author at the
University of California in Los Angeles.
Chemical manufacturer 3M will begin payments starting in the
third quarter to many U.S. public drinking water systems as
part of a multi-billion-dollar settlement over contamination
with potentially harmful compounds used in firefighting foam
and several consumer products, the company said. St. Paul,
Minnesota-based 3M announced Monday that last year’s lawsuit
settlement received final approval from the U.S. District Court
in Charleston, South Carolina. The agreement called for payouts
through 2036. Depending on what additional contamination is
found, the amount paid out will range from $10.5 billion to
$12.5 billion.
The San Luis Valley Groundwater Basin stretches from San Luis
Obispo to Edna Valley — but a toxic chemical swirling in the
water prevents the city from using the resource for drinking
water. That will soon change, however. San Luis Obispo won a
$6.6-million grant to install wells that remove
tetrachloroethylene, a chemical also known as PCE, from the
groundwater, according to city water resources program manager
Nick Teague. The wells should be operational by 2026 and will
allow the city to fulfill about 12% of its drinking water
needs, he said.
The Biden-Harris administration is redoubling its efforts to
improve cybersecurity for the nation’s water systems. In March,
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the White
House issued a dire warning to state governors alerting them of
the need to protect water and wastewater systems from ongoing
cybersecurity threats and requested that the states provide
plans to decrease the risk of attacks on water and wastewater
systems in their state. … While the letter focused on
the national need for investment in water infrastructure,
California’s water systems are in particularly dire need for
upgrades. The EPA has previously estimated that California
needs about $51 billion in improvements to its water
infrastructure.
A generational issue for the families living in San Lucas
continues as they’ve gone decades without drinking water. Soon
federal, state, and local leaders will secure nearly a million
dollars to build a pipeline to King City. … Plants not
growing, animals dying, young children unable to bathe, this is
the reality for those living in the unincorporated South
Monterey County town of San Lucas.
At the Indian Wells Valley Water District board meeting on
March 11, the Water District board moved forward in learning
about the process of consolidating the Dune 3 water mutual
company into their service area. Some negotiation and planning
still needs to happen before any decision is finalized, but for
the moment the board is willing to cautiously move forward in
the process. The IWV Water District serves water to IWV
residents by pumping water out of the IWV groundwater basin.
However, they are not the only ones doing so. Dotted all across
IWV are domestic well owners and even a few other public or
private organizations resembling a water district. If one of
those organizations fails, an obligation still exists to serve
water to the people in that region.
Imagine putting billions of dollars into creating something
that tastes like nothing. When it comes to municipal water
systems the world over, that’s what water companies strive to
provide — no bad or off flavors, no assertive minerals, just
bland safety. It’s a miracle, and one we shouldn’t take for
granted. In The Taste of Water, author Christy Spackman looks
beyond the glass to ask how our water should and shouldn’t
taste. Spackman, a professor at Arizona State University, is
also the director of the Sensory Labor(atory), an experimental
research collective dedicated to disrupting longstanding
sensory hierarchies. Through her work, she became interested in
why people eat what they do and how the management of taste and
smell done by food scientists and engineers, shapes the
experiences we often take for granted.
At least 70 million Americans get their water from a system
where toxic PFAS “forever chemicals” were found at levels that
require reporting to the Environmental Protection Agency.
That’s according to new data the EPA released in its ongoing
5-year review of water systems across the nation. The number
will almost certainly grow as new reports are released every
three months. … Found in drinking water, food,
firefighting foam, and nonstick and water-repellent items, PFAS
resist degradation, building up in both the environment and our
bodies. Salt Lake City; Sacramento,
California; Madison, Wisconsin; and Louisville,
Kentucky, were among the major systems reporting PFAS
contamination to the EPA in the latest data release.
Hastings, Minnesota, is staring down a $69 million price tag
for three new treatment plants to remove PFAS chemicals from
its water supply, ahead of new US federal regulations limiting
the amount of so-called forever chemicals in public drinking
water — which could come as early as this month. … [T]he
project amounts to a “budget buster,” says city administrator
Dan Wietecha. Operation and maintenance costs for the new
plants could add as much as $1 million to the tab each year
… Cities across the US are bracing for costly upgrades
to their water systems as the Environmental Protection Agency
moves to finalize the first-ever enforceable national drinking
water standards for PFAS — or per- and polyfluoroalkyl
substances — a large group of man-made chemicals used for
decades in manufacturing and in consumer products.
Joaquin Esquivel learned that life is
what happens when you make plans. Esquivel, who holds the public
member slot at the State Water Resources Control Board in
Sacramento, had just closed purchase on a house in Washington
D.C. with his partner when he was tapped by Gov. Jerry Brown a
year ago to fill the Board vacancy.
Esquivel, 35, had spent a decade in Washington, first in several
capacities with then Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., and then as
assistant secretary for federal water policy at the California
Natural Resources Agency. As a member of the State Water Board,
he shares with four other members the difficult task of
ensuring balance to all the uses of California’s water.
Many Californians don’t realize that when they turn on the
faucet, the water that flows out could come from a source close
to home or one hundreds of miles away. Most people take their
water for granted; not thinking about the elaborate systems and
testing that go into delivering clean, plentiful water to
households throughout the state. Where drinking water comes from,
how it’s treated, and what people can do to protect its quality
are highlighted in this 2007 PBS documentary narrated by actress
Wendie Malick.
A 30-minute version of the 2007 PBS documentary Drinking Water:
Quenching the Public Thirst. This DVD is ideal for showing at
community forums and speaking engagements to help the public
understand the complex issues surrounding the elaborate systems
and testing that go into delivering clean, plentiful water to
households throughout the state.
A companion to the Truckee River Basin Map poster, this 24×36
inch poster, suitable for framing, explores the Carson River, and
its link to the Truckee River. The map includes Lahontan Dam and
Reservoir, the Carson Sink, and the farming areas in the basin.
Map text discusses the region’s hydrology and geography, the
Newlands Project, land and water use within the basin and
wetlands. Development of the map was funded by a grant from the
U.S. Bureau of Reclamation Mid-Pacific Region, Lahontan Basin
Area Office.
As the state’s population continues to grow and traditional water
supplies grow tighter, there is increased interest in reusing
treated wastewater for a variety of activities, including
irrigation of crops, parks and golf courses, groundwater recharge
and industrial uses.
This printed issue of Western Water discusses low
impact development and stormwater capture – two areas of emerging
interest that are viewed as important components of California’s
future water supply and management scenario.
This printed issue of Western Water, based on presentations
at the November 3-4, 2010 Water Quality Conference in Ontario,
Calif., looks at constituents of emerging concerns (CECs) – what
is known, what is yet to be determined and the potential
regulatory impacts on drinking water quality.
This printed copy of Western Water examines the challenges facing
small water systems, including drought preparedness, limited
operating expenses and the hurdles of complying with costlier
regulations. Much of the article is based on presentations at the
November 2007 Small Systems Conference sponsored by the Water
Education Foundation and the California Department of Water
Resources.
This issue of Western Water looks at some of the issues
facing drinking water providers, such as compliance with
increasingly stringent treatment requirements, the need to
improve source water quality and the mission of continually
informing consumers about the quality of water they receive.
This issue of Western Water examines PPCPs – what they are, where
they come from and whether the potential exists for them to
become a water quality problem. With the continued emphasis on
water quality and the fact that many water systems in the West
are characterized by flows dominated by effluent contributions,
PPCPs seem likely to capture interest for the foreseeable future.