Posts made in March 2022

On Friday, March 18, 2022, the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) Division of Drinking Water (DDW) announced that they will release “A Notice of Public Workshop and Opportunity for Public Comment on Administrative Draft Hexavalent Chromium Maximum Contaminant Level” during the week of March 21, 2022.

DDW will hold workshops on April 5th and April 7th to receive public comments. The deadline to submit written comments on the draft Maximum Contaminant Level will be Friday, April 29, 2022.

No additional details are available at this time.

On Wednesday, March 30, 2022, 9:00 am to 11:00 am, the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) will hold a workshop (via Zoom) on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) funding. The funding will be available for “technical and financial assistance to drinking water systems.” A link to the announcement is (https://wqts.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/notice_pfasworkshop_033022.pdf).

According to the enclosed announcement $30 million has been appropriated from the State’s General Fund to address PFAS. Additional funding is as follows: $50 million for FY 2022/2023 and $20 million for FY 2023/2024.

Link to register and join the workshop (located in the announcement and presented below):
https://waterboards.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_9rOyW9RXRPOpz_Uqg75vKw?utm_campaign=PFAS+Funding+Staff+Workshop

On June 21, 2022 the SWRCB will vote on a resolution to “formally delegate authorities for administration of the PFAS General Fund allocation….”

The Pennsylvania Environmental Quality Board published proposed MCLs for PFOA and PFOS. Public hearings will be held later this month.

The proposed MCLs are:
PFOA – 14 ng/L
PFOS – 18 ng/L

Link to a copy of the Pennsylvania Bulletin (https://wqts.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Pennsylvania-Bulletin_Proposed-PFAS-MCLs_2022-02-26.pdf). The proposed PFAS MCLs section begins on page 1245 (the proposal includes an extensive discussion on occurrence data, health effects information, and costs as background to the proposed MCLs).

The fifth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 5) was published in the Federal Register on December 27, 2021. Under UCMR5, monitoring for 29 PFAS and lithium will occur between 2023 and 2025. Surface water systems will conduct one year of quarterly monitoring; groundwater systems will collect two samples (5 to 7 months apart) in a 12 month period.

On March 16, 2022 and March 17, 2022, EPA will host (identical) webinars on the UCMR5.

EPA’s description of the webinars:
“….to provide public water systems (PWSs), states, laboratories, and other stakeholders with a comprehensive overview of the UCMR 5 program. The meetings will address: a general introduction to the UCMR program, PWSs subject to UCMR 5 requirements, the analytes to be monitored, monitoring locations and frequency, reporting requirements, ground water representative monitoring plans (GWRMPs), and the laboratory approval program.”

“The number of webinar connections available for the two webinars is limited and will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis. If stakeholder interest exceeds the maximum number of available connections, EPA may schedule additional webinars….”

Registration for the Wednesday, Mar 16, 2022 (9:00 am – 12:30 pm, ET) webinar:
https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/1482122302904387856

Registration for the Thursday, Mar 17, 2022 (1:00 pm – 4:30 pm, ET) webinar:
https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/938328041062195726

In the February 9, 2022 Federal Register (copy here Fed Reg_Env Justice Public Meetings When Setting PFAS MCLs) EPA announced that they will hold two identical public meetings to…

“….discuss and solicit input on environmental justice considerations related to the development of the proposed per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) national primary drinking water regulation (NPDWR) under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). In the context of developing this proposed regulation, environmental justice considerations include the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies with a particular focus on unique challenges faced by communities disproportionately burdened by environmental harms and risks. EPA is holding these meetings to share information and provide an opportunity for communities to offer input on the development of the proposed PFAS NPDWR.”

The public meetings will be held on March 2, 2022 (1:00 pm to 4:00 pm, eastern time) and April 5, 2022 ( 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm, eastern time). The enclosed Federal Register notice includes information on registration for the meetings.

The enclosed Federal Register notice indicates that EPA still expects to publish proposed MCLs for PFOA and PFOS in the fall of 2022 (and publish final MCLs by fall 2023).