The U.S. EPA is moving quickly to set new limits on PFOA/PFOS in drinking water systems. Several U.S. mayors are raising concerns about the impact of these regulations on their cities, calling on the EPA to evaluate whether there is enough science to support the decision and if the benefits of an extremely low MCL outweigh the massive costs that would be placed on local water systems.
These regulations do not happen in a vacuum. Water systems protect against hundreds of threats to drinking water safety daily, and many of them are dealing with strained budgets and operational capacity. We must consider how the proposed PFAS MCLs will impact both small and large water systems ability to deliver safe, reliable and accessible drinking water to the most amount of people.