Statewide Iowa — Water utilities in Iowa and nationwide would be required to monitor drinking water for six so-called “forever chemicals” under a proposal from the US Environmental Protection Agency.
The measure sets legally enforceable levels for PFAS chemicals in drinking water. The health concerns of these chemicals include cancer and decreased fertility. University of Iowa researcher David Cwiertny says the proposal is a fairly aggressive nationwide standard.
Corey McCoid, supervisor of Water Supply Operations at the Iowa DNR, says the agency has been testing for PFAS across the state. He says the department can only require drinking water providers to notify the public about what’s in their drinking water, at least until the EPA limit is in place.
The DNR says six Iowa water supplies exceed the limit of the four-parts-per-trillion level that’s proposed by the feds. The EPA is taking public comments on the rules and hopes to finalize them by the end of this year.
