How an Arizona agency is working to limit ‘forever chemicals’ in drinking water
In Star Valley, efforts are already underway to ensure clean, safe water supply
PHOENIX (AZFamily) — When officials found PFAS or “forever chemicals” in Star Valley’s water, the three contaminated wells shut down within the hour. Now, the town and the state are working to ensure that the town has clean drinking water for the long haul.
The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality announced earlier this year it’ll use $5 million from the state and $42 million from the federal government to help communities across the state eliminate PFAS by the 2029 deadline.
“That’s the last thing that we’d want for anybody for a town to have bad water,” Star Valley mayor Bobby Davis said. “Because just the pump alone is over $400,000. You know you take $400,000 out of our budget it does make a difference because we’d rather use that for our wage department or help improve the streets or roads for our citizens.”
What is PFAS?
PFAS is short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, used in nonstick frying pans, water-repellent sports gear, stain-resistant rugs, cosmetics and countless other products since the 1940s. The chemical bonds are so strong that they do not degrade or do so only slowly in the environment and remain in a person’s bloodstream indefinitely.
PFOA and PFOS has been linked to an increased risk for certain cancers and can affect child development.
Earlier this year, the feds finalized strict limits on the “forever chemicals.” By 2029, all public water systems must limit the amount of the chemicals to comply with the EPA, reducing exposure for 100 million people and helping prevent thousands of illnesses.
The Associated Press contributed to this explainer.
What is the state of Arizona doing to ensure a clean water supply?
ADEQ began testing for PFAS in the water supply of 700 public water systems across the state in 2022.
“This is a group of or a class of hundreds of thousands of different compounds that are man-made so this is not a natural occurring contaminant,” said Matthew Olson, the agency’s PFAS Project Manager.
When the agency tested Star Valley’s wells, they found 16.9 parts per trillion (ppt) of PFOA and 15 ppt of PFOS.
The legally allowable limit the EPA set is 4 ppt. For context, 1 ppt equals one drop of ink in 20 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
While the water is safe to drink and the contaminated wells closed immediately, the town still needs more ways to access clean water.
“Yes it did hurt to lose those three wells, but they were low wells,” Davis said. “They were not high producing wells so we’re going to get some more wells online.”
ADEQ says it’ll help build a new boost pump station to reach deeper, cleaner water and connect Star Valley’s water to smaller surrounding communities.
“To probably get hooked up to the town’s water so that helps cure the problem that them little systems are having where they have high PFAS right now,” said Dean Shaffer, operator for Star Valley Water.
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