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Home My WebLink About04.d. (Handout) Revised Presentation of Update on PFAS Item 4.d. (Handout) Revised Presentation I� UPDATE ON PER- AND POLYFLUOROALKYL - SUBSTANCES (PFAS) Melody LaBella, P.E. Resource Recovery Program Manager ., REEP Committee Meeting September 16, 2019 PRESENTATION OVERVIEW What are PFAS? Why the Concern? Sources to the Water Environment Common Uses Drinking Water Notification and Response Levels Potential Impacts to Our Industry 2016 Regional Monitoring Program Study State Board's Phased Investigation Plan Next Steps for Central San Questions 1 WHAT ARE PFAS? PFAS are a broad class of fluorine-rich specialty chemicals that have been o q manufactured and used in a variety of industries around the globe, including in the United States, since the 1940s. Some possess thermal stability, non-reactivity, and surfactant properties. The carbon-fluorine bonds are some of the strongest known to science, which means PFAS show extremely high persistence. ' 3 WHY THE CONCERN? Well-studied perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) have been shown to be highly toxic. Other PFAS have received little to no testing, but their structural similarities suggest they are likely to trigger similar concerns for human and ecological health. PFAS have been linked to increased cancer risk, elevated cholesterol levels, and decreased fertility. 2 PFAS are being found in drinking water supplies. Sedlak, M.,Sutton R.,Wong A.,Lin, Diana.2018. Per and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances(PFASs)in San Francisco Bay:Synthesis and Strategy. RMP Contribution No.867.San Francisco Estuary Institute,Richmond CA. Z US Department of Health and Human Services,Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.2018."Draft Toxicological Profile for Perfluoroalkyls." y I 2 WHY THE CONCERN? Nearly 5,000 PFAS are used in consumer, commercial, and industrial applications. Including personal care products and food packaging Cheo th ••IVI,V 0. = Denmark just became the first country to ban PFAS 'forever chemicals' from food packaging Uy—ice,CHH O Wee+ee o:as wn Er.Vb seo,er'--4, CFNTRAI SAN � 5 SOURCES OF PFAS TO THE WATER ENVIRONMENT Military bases and airports IV Due to aqueous film-forming foams used for fire fighting r PFAS production facilities Air deposition Landfills Treated wastewater effluent 3 COMMON USES Lv I ' • y PP07ECT;VE COATINGS .. CFNTRAI SAN1 2016 REGIONAL MONITORING PROGRAM STUDY BY SAN FRANCISCO ESTUARY INSTITUTE 50 40 e = 30 0 Y [0 L Y 20 u O V 10 ��`h ti��c��QO��¢QOSpP Q��QP QQOQP QQ�P Q�Q�P Q��.�P Q4�QP Q��P QQ�P QQ�h QQ��S Q�py ■Palo Alto ❑SJ/Santa Clara ❑EBMUD ❑EBDA ■Central Contra Costa 5 San Mateo 8 4 CALIFORNIA DRINKING WATER NOTIFICATION AND RESPONSE LEVELS In August 2019, the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) recommended notification levels (NLs) for PFOA and PFOS be set at the lowest reliable detection limit in drinking water to protect against cancer and non-cancer effects. The State Water Resources Control Board (State Board) Division of Drinking Water matched OEHHA's recommendations. NLs of 6.5 parts per trillion (ppt) for PFOS and 5.1 ppt for PFOA Response level at 70 ppt (discontinue source or provide treatment) F CENTRAL SAN STATE BOARD'S PHASED INVESTIGATION PLAN Phase I involves over 1 ,500 airports, landfills, and drinking water wells across the state. Phase II will cover refineries, bulk terminals, non- airport fire training areas, and urban fire areas. Phase III will cover secondary manufacturers, wastewater treatment plants, and domestic wells. 5 STATE LEGISLATION AB 756 (Garcia): Public Water Systems PFAS, signed into law on July 31 , 2019 and effective on January 1 , 2020, expands the State Board's authority to order public water systems to monitor for PFAS. If any such monitoring results in a confirmed PFAS detection, the water system must report it in its annual consumer confidence report. If detected levels of PFAS exceed the 70 ppt response level, the water system must take the water source out of use or provide public notification within 30 days of the confirmed detection. CENTRAL SAN FEDERAL LEGISLATION National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) S. 1790 (Inhofe): passed Senate in June 2019 HR. 2500 (Smith): passed House in July 2019 House did not go through regular order and consider PFAS legislation in Committee. Several significant PFAS provisions were added as amendments to the House's NDAA bill just before it was voted on and passed. 6 FEDERAL LEGISLATION Two HR. 2500 amendments are of concern to wastewater: One amendment would add all PFAS to the Clean Water Act (CWA) toxic pollutants list and require EPA to develop CWA effluent limitations and pretreatment standards for PFAS by January 1 , 2022. The other amendment would trigger liability for all PFAS chemicals under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act as hazardous substances, which could create liability for POTWs that receive PFAS- containing influent and ultimately dispose of PFAS-containing .'' biosolids. G CENTRAL SAN POTENTIAL IMPACTS TO OUR INDUSTRY Potable reuse Biosolids disposal Land application or landfill Future regulations (?) Negligible removal of PFAS through conventional wastewater treatment Revere osmosis (RO) is effective at removal, but concentrates PFAS in the RO membrane reject PFAS thermal destruction range = 600 to 3,600 °F NEXT STEPS FOR CENTRAL SAN Supporting CASA's efforts to work with the State Board to help shape the Phase III investigation plan for wastewater treatment plants Potential participation in Water Research Foundation's studies on the fate and transport of PFAS through wastewater treatment and sewage sludge incineration Learning more about PFAS ' is CENTRAL SAN CENTRAL SAN'S PFAS TASK FORCE Engineering Regulatory Communications/ Jean-Marc Petit Lori Schectel Legislation Melody LaBella Lab Emily Barnett Dan Frost Mary Lou Esparza Pretreatment Colleen Henry Jeff Skinner Air Randy Schmidt Rita Cheng CFNTPAISAN 8 QUESTIONS? : r 171 CENTRAL SAN . : 9