CL water supplies impacted by new state acid guidelines

New state drinking water guidelines issued last week drop allowable levels of acids water districts in the state can allow in water they provide their customers.

Though sampling indicated levels of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) in a couple of its sources of water, the water district that provides Canyon Lake with its drinking water, Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District, said it is currently not producing drinking water from those sources.

EVMWD is evaluating options to meet these new regulations including importing water to offset local supplies and in the long term, considering construction of treatment systems if water sources exceed state mandated response levels.

“Our number one priority is providing clean, reliable drinking water to our customers,” said Andy Morris, president of the EVMWD board of directors. “We are exploring all options for treating or replacing the water supplies impacted by these chemicals, as well as the evaluating the long-term impacts.”

The California State Water Resource Control Board issued the new drinking water guidelines, lowering the trigger levels for responses by local water systems to 10 ppt for perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and 40 ppt for perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS). The new guidelines, known as Response Levels, are among the lowest in the nation. One part-per-trillion is the equivalent of one drop of water in the Rose Bowl Stadium, the district said.

Around the world, people have been exposed to PFOA and PFOS through many consumer products, such as makeup, dental floss, food containers, non-stick cookware, carpets, and other items used every day, EVMWD officials said. Part of a larger family of chemicals – PFAS—PFOA and PFOS have historically been used heavily in manufacturing. Water districts don’t put these chemicals into water, but over time they have entered water supplies through runoff, firefighting foam, landfills, and manufacturing, the water district said.

Exposure to these chemicals at certain levels can cause health impacts, but the exact level is still unknown. The science is evolving and experts throughout the country continue to grapple with what levels are acceptable in drinking water, the district said.

Now, with new Response Levels in place, water districts are faced with the high cost of treating or replacing local water supplies, Morris said.

“It’s paramount that water remain affordable, and so we urge state and federal regulators to rely on the best available science when making decisions that have a significant impact on our ability to supply clean and affordable water,” said Morris.

As background, California issued monitoring orders last year for PFOA and PFOS to more than 200 public water agencies, including EVWMD. These chemicals were found in local water supplies without surpassing the prior Response Level.

Under the new Response Levels, one source was found to exceed response levels and water from this source will not be served, Morris said. To replace the current impacted source, the cost to EVMWD and its customers could be significant, he said.

New response levels in California also have the unintended consequence of driving up reliance on imported water supplies to meet demands. To meet the state’s advised levels, EVMWD and many other water agencies must rely on costlier imported water that can replace or blend with impacted local water supplies.

“Water quality is critical to our mission as a water district,” Morris said. “As part of the District’s commitment to clean water, EVMWD analyzes water via a stringent process that involves more than 17,000 tests per year for more than 250 different compounds, such as arsenic and radioactive elements.”