We hope you liked our Power Generation and Supply Monthly Roundup that was published last month. Today, we're here with our Water / Wastewater Market Monthly Roundup featuring top news, drivers, and much more. Enjoy the blog!
Industry Drivers - PFAS Developments
Legislative and regulatory developments around perfluorinated and polyfluorinated chemicals (PFAS) are important drivers for companies that are serving the U.S. water industry. Let us know if you are interested in additional state-level information, including firmographic data on how utilities are likely to be impacted.
PFAS Background
PFAS are resistant to water and heat, and as a result were traditionally used in applications where those properties were beneficial. There are more than 3,000 known PFAS chemicals, and their detection in drinking water supplies and soil is raising concern about potential health effects.
Most of the focus is on PFOA and PFOS that are considered to be two of the most well-known and prevalent PFAS chemicals.
PFAS and the U.S. Federal Government
At the federal level, an Action Plan was issued by the EPA in February 2019, as well as a 1-page fact sheet summary. The Action Plan outlines next steps, including setting a drinking water maximum contaminant level (MCL) and monitoring of PFAS under the 4th Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 4). Standards will be created addressing groundwater contamination remediation, and detecting and mitigating PFAS contamination in other media. From a legislative perspective, the U.S. Senate was working on a bill as reported by the American Water Works Association (AWWA).
We understand that the bill has since been wrapped into the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020, introduced on June 11, 2019. This is interesting in that the requirements would initially apply to “drinking, surface, or ground water from PFAS originating from activities of the Department of Defense”, and would require managing contamination to the level of either a State standard (see below) or an enforceable federal standard. Release disclosures would be required (Sec. 6711) as well as the establishment of a national primary drinking water regulation (Sec. 6721).
PFAS and State Governments
At a State level, we are tracking legislative and regulatory developments relating to PFAS contamination. Here are some recent updates:
California. The State Assembly passed AB 756 effective August 1, 2019. This bill requires all California Water Systems to test for PFOA and PFOS Chemicals. Water suppliers will be required to notify if PFAS are present in water.
New York. The State Department of Health has recommended the new standards for drinking water, setting MCLs for a number of chemicals including PFOA and PFOS.
New Hampshire. On July 18, the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NHDES) filed a final rulemaking proposal to establish MCLs for four PFAS: PFOA, PFOS, PFNA and PFHxS. If approved, the new rules are scheduled to become effective on October 1, 2019. 
Rhode Island. In March, the Rhode Island Department of Health declined to regulate toxic PFAS in drinking water. The decision came in response to a petition filed in February this year by Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) and Toxics Action Center (TAC).
Vermont. The Department of Health has derived a Drinking Water Health Advisory of 20 parts per trillion (ppt) applicable to 5 PFAS substances combined: PFHpA, PFHxS, PFNA, PFOS and PFOA. The final adopted rule can be downloaded at Contaminated Sites Rules, Guidance Documents & Procedures
Meeting Planner
In this over-digitized age, there is no replacement for face-to-face meetings with your prospects and customers! We track meetings of interest to our customers serving the US water and wastewater industry so you won’t miss upcoming meetings and deadlines.
Meetings in September, 2019
- AESP Summer Conference & Expo - Sep. 8 to 11, 2019, San Diego, California, https://watereuse.org/news-events/conferences/34th-annual-watereuse-symposium/
- Rocky Mountain Water Conference (formerly the RMSAWWA/RMWEA Joint Annual Conference) - Sep. 8 - 11, 2019 - Keystone, Colorado, https://www.rmsawwa.org/page/RockyMtnWaterConf
- WaterPro Conference - Sep. 9 to 11, 2019, Nashville, Tennessee, https://waterproconference.org/
- MI-ACE Annual Conference & Exhibits - Sep. 10 to 13, 2019 - Acme, Michigan, https://mi-water.site-ym.com/events/EventDetails.aspx?id=1227708
- WI AWWA Annual Meeting & Expo - Sep. 11 to 13, 2019 - Madison, Wisconsin, https://www.wiawwa.org/page/AnnualMeeting
- MN AWWA Annual Conference - Sep. 17 to 20, 2019 - Duluth, Minnesota, https://www.mnawwa.org/page/AnnualConference
- WEF Annual Technical Exhibition and Conference - Sep. 22 to 25, 2019 - Chicago, Illinois, https://www.weftec.org/
- NEWWA Annual Conference - Sep. 22 to 25, 2019 - Rockport, Maine, https://newwa.org/Events/AnnualConference.aspx
Call for Papers Deadlines
- Event: The Illinois Section American Water Works Association Annual Conference and Expo
Association: American Water Works Association, Illinois Section
URL: https://www.isawwa.org/mpage/2015conf00
Dates: from 2020-03-23 till 2020-03-26
Location: Springfield, Illinois, USA
Call for Papers Deadline: 2019-09-01 - Event: TX AWWA Texas Water
Association: American Water Works Association, Texas Section
URL: https://www.txwater.org/
Dates: from 2020-03-31 till 2020-04-03
Location: Fort Worth, Texas, USA
Call for Papers Deadline: 2019-09-10 - Event: IN AWWA Annual Conference
Association: American Water Works Association, Indiana Section
URL: https://www.inawwa.org/event/2020-annual-conference/
Dates: from 2020-01-27 till 2020-01-30
Location: Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
Call for Papers Deadline: 2019-09-20
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Disclaimer
None of the information we provide may be taken as legal advice. Please consult an attorney if you require a legal interpretation of this information.
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