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EPCOR is committed to providing its customers with clean, reliable water, conducting more than 300,000 water quality tests every year. A critical step in delivering on this promise is continuously striving to increase our understanding of manmade Polyfluoroalkyl and Perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and their potentially hazardous impacts on public health.

Understanding PFAS

PFAS – Per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances – are widely used, manufactured chemicals that break down very slowly over a long period of time. There are thousands of known PFAS chemicals found in everyday life including food-handling materials, non-stick cookware like TEFLON™, medical devices, personal care products, stain and water repellants like Scotchgard™ and GORE-TEX™ and even construction equipment and industrial applications, like firefighting foam.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), PFAS can be found in the blood of people and animals all over the world and are present at low levels in a variety of food products and in the environment. They are also found in water, air, fish, and soil at locations across the nation and the globe.

Scientific studies have shown that exposure to some PFAS in the environment may be linked to harmful health effects in humans and animals. But, because there are thousands of PFAS chemicals found in many different consumer, commercial, and industrial products, it’s challenging to study and assess the potential human health and environmental risks.
 
As the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other federal regulators continue to research these chemicals and determine a national standard for the safe level of exposure to these chemicals, EPCOR continues its role in testing for PFAS and finding ways to mitigate PFAS levels when found in drinking water sources.

EPA Proposed Drinking Water Standards

While there is no current EPA requirement or regulatory standard for PFAS, on March 29, 2023, the EPA proposed drinking water standards for six PFAS contaminants:​

PFOA

4 parts per trillion (ppt)

​PFOS

​4 ppt

​PFNA

1 (unitless) 
Hazard Index​​​​​

​PFHxS​​​

PFBS

​HFPO-DA (commonly referred to as GenX Chemicals)

EPA’s proposed drinking water standard is that concentrations of two individual PFAS contaminants – PFOA and PFOS – should not exceed 4 parts per trillion (ppt), combined. One part per trillion is the equivalent of a single second in 31,500 years. The EPA determined that its proposed standard provides even the most sensitive populations with a margin of protection from a lifetime of exposure to PFOA and PFOS from drinking water. The EPA expects to finalize the new PFAS drinking water standards in early 2024. When this new standard becomes effective, all water providers in the United States will be required to meet the new standard within three years from that point.

​When the EPA sets standards, it considers the impact of a lifetime of exposure. Generally, a lifetime of exposure would mean that an individual would need to drink two liters every day from the very same water source for 70 years.

If you are concerned about potential health effects from exposure to these PFAS above the health advisory level, contact your doctor or healthcare professional.
Learn more​​

If this new standard becomes effective, all water providers in the United States will be required to meet the new standard within three years from that point.

Our Actions

At EPCOR, we have already been monitoring all of our water sources for PFAS and developing a plan to ensure that our water sources will meet newer, more stringent requirements as they become the new standard. This includes infrastructure improvements to add treatment processes that remove PFAS from water, examining the impact this will have on the cost of delivering your service, and identifying grants and other potential funding sources to help offset those necessary costs.​

​Read​ the most current report on the quality of your drinking water.​

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