First, it was lead leeching into the water of some communities, which led to more regulations. Now per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances have been prevalent, causing water utilities, some of which may still be dealing with lead pipe issues, to deal with them, too.

According to an October 2023 article titled “America’s Failing Drinking Water Systems” by Nicole Greenfield for Natural Resources Defense Council, “Chronic underinvestment has left water infrastructure outdated and on the verge of collapse in many places across the country.”

The article stated that lead, PFAS, industrial pollution and agricultural runoff are all contaminating drinking water across the country. In the article, Greenfield cited the historic flooding that damaged water operations in Jackson, Miss.; the superfund site for cleanup in Houston, Texas, as well as its widespread PFAS problems; and Buffalo, N.Y., which according to the article, has an estimated 40,000 water service lines containing lead, mostly because 64% of houses in Buffalo are more than 80 years old, “giving the city the distinction of having the oldest urban housing stock in the US.”

North Carolina

According to a local news report on WRAL.com on June 5, 2024, some of the largest water utilities in the state are dealing with PFAS levels above the Environmental Protection Agency’s new standards. Some of those utilities include the city of Durham; the city of Greensboro; Fayetteville Public Works Commission; Piedmont Triad Regional Water Utility; and Brunswick County Public Utility.

The news report stated that at least 2.5 million people in North Carolina have drinking water contaminated with PFAS. Known as “forever chemicals,” they are linked to cancer, reproductive issues and immune system issues. The report stated some of the highest levels in the state were found in Robeson County Water System, serving 64,000 residents, including PFOS at 30 ppt and GENX at 33 ppts — well above the new drinking water standards set by the EPA.

The Orange Water Sewer Authority, which serves 80,000 residents, including in the town of Chapel Hill, home of the main University of North Carolina campus, Carrboro and parts of Orange County, reportedly found 11 PFAS in one of its reservoirs. It reportedly began monitoring PFAS in 2018 and began upgrades to its treatment system to reduce PFAS in 2023.

The Municipal reached out to the town of Chapel Hill, which referred us to the Orange Water Sewer Authority; however, attempts to learn what upgrades OSWA had made went unanswered.

The news report shared the Environmental Working Group’s analysis stated there are at least 66 electroplating facilities and 50 chemical manufacturers in the state that could be sources of PFAS, but there could be as many as 736 suspected industrial PFAS dischargers. Firefighting foam used near military facilities and airports — a known source of PFAS — as well as spreading wastewater sludge and textile manufacturers may also be sources.

In April 2024, strict limits on PFAS were finalized by the EPA. According to an Associated Press report, the EPA estimates it will cost about $1.5 billion to implement each year, but doing so will prevent nearly 10,000 deaths over decades and significantly reduce serious illnesses.

In this struggle, North Carolina is not alone. Stillwater, Minn., recently found six of its eight wells failed to meet the health department’s stringent health goals for PFOA, and two of the wells failed to meet state health goals for the additional chemical PFOS. This was reported by the Star Tribune on June 1, 2024.

According to that article — “PFAS contamination in Stillwater’s water has city racing to catch up and pay up” by Matt McKinney — City Administrator Joe Kohlmann said the city estimates it could cost up to $13 million per well to clean the city’s water, and the city is pursuing funds from several sources to help pay for treatment. Repeated calls to Kohlmann were not returned.

AWWA offers advice

Greg Kail, director of communications for the American Water Works Association, gave some input. When asked which is more prevalent, lead pipes or PFAS, he responded, “It’s difficult to compare because they’re so different. Lead is something we’ve been dealing with for decades. What sets lead apart from most other contaminants is the concern you’re dealing with only exists where lead exists in the home environment.”

He said the biggest source of lead contamination in the home is lead service lines, and there are about 7 million to 10 million lead service lines still out there.

“Every day there are fewer as communities have been removing them, and with the new lead regulations, there will be a lot more conversations about that as communities put together a plan on how to remove them over time and other actions associated with lead.”

PFAS is an entirely different emergent contaminant, and Kail noted there have been no PFAS regulations until now. He said there are literally thousands of types of PFAS. The new regulations are focused on two types — PFOS and PFOA, which fall under that umbrella. PFAS are more widespread, and there are greater concentrations where there has been PFAS manufacturing or industrial use. PFAS are found in consumer packaging, firefighting foam, repellents, waterproofing, nonstick pans and more.

“They are out in the environment everywhere, unlike lead — when you find it you remove it — PFAS require additional treatment. That’s the overarching difference between the two,” he said.

While having to deal with PFAS in water is “new for all of us,” Kail said, research has been happening for many years. With lead, Kail noted you can have the same water quality in the community and one house built in 1990 would have no lead, while another built decades before has lead in both the service lines and plumbing components.

Historically, utilities have had to adjust water chemicals, so it’s less likely to have lead leech out and get into the water, which is an effective strategy until you have a failure like in Washington, DC in the early 2000s when it switched a disinfectant and in Flint, Mich., where it changed the source of the water but didn’t make the adjustments necessary to prevent lead from leeching.

He said those treatment failures “are rare, but when they happen, it’s a reminder to those who treat and deliver water that we need to be very careful; we need strong protections today as we work toward a future with no lead service lines.”

When asked if states offer assistance to towns and cities, he responded the EPA sets regulations and the states enforce them.

“If there’s a lack of funding for particular regulations, there are different ways utilities can address it — through state revolving fund loans and the bipartisan infrastructure act designates a certain amount … about $90 billion over time to get lead service lines out. Ultimately, different communities will use what works best for them,” he said.

When it comes to PFAS, he said even some water professionals misspeak when they say PFAS, even though they actually meant PFOS — perfluorooctanesulfonic acid — or PFOA — perfluorooctanoic acid. But they are all chemicals under PFAS umbrella. Because the small levels that the regulations are asking the utilities to find of PFOS and PFOA — parts per trillions levels — they have to be very careful in labs not to have contaminants that might cause false positives.

“Not long ago, we had no methodology to find substances at those levels,” he said.

When asked what advice they offer to members, he responded, “There are technical solutions available to manage both PFAS and lead.”

He added, “While they are different in the way communities address them, the common thread that utilities can do is to have proactive communications, which is really critical.”

He said AWWA does an annual study on the public’s perception of tap water, and it shows that people who remember receiving a communication from their utility are “significantly more likely to trust the quality of their water — that’s real important because when dealing with lead or PFAS a lot of times maintaining relationships between utilities and consumers comes down to who are you going to trust.”

He said a couple of years ago the public affairs council put together a guide called “Trending in an Instant” to help utilities understand communities and the challenges social media brings today and the importance of being seen in their community as a trusted institution.

“We like to emphasize that a utility can’t be successful if the only time consumers hear from them is when there’s a problem.”

The biggest thing they can do, Kail said, is to “get out in the community and be a recognized anchor institution in the community.”

AWWA also has a source called “Public Perceptions on Tap” that shows year after year a lower level of trust in communities of color, especially Black and Hispanic communities, as well as in lower income communities.

“That underscores the importance of utilities making an extra effort to go out and understand the concerns of these communities,” which he said often comes from historical inequity or deep-seated mistrust of institutions and of water quality.

“We always advise that utilities first do an outstanding job of delivering service and then make sure they’re talking to their community, so they know what you do and how you do it. Make sure people know you understand their concerns, recognize them and (share) what you’re going to do to address it,” he said.

Regarding yet unregulated contaminants, including ones that science is still finding answers on about the risk level of contamination, he added, “The simple act of having a conversation goes a long way to strengthening trust. If you don’t have all the answers, actively listen to concerns, tell them what you know and what you’re doing.”

Kail said utilities should look at these recent changes to the lead and copper rule, etc. as “opportunities to begin or expand conversations about risks associated with lead and the importance of getting it out of the ground.”

He further expounded that a simple conversation would “never take the place of 24/7 commitment to protecting public health — that has to be first,” but it’s about “being proactive to earn public trust.”

“Often utilities are doing all the right things but communities don’t know that they’re doing it,” he said.

Sources for utilities and to share with public

American Water Works Association offers helpful resources for utilities to us.

• https://www.awwa.org/lead
• https://www.awwa.org/PFAS
• https://www.awwa.org/communications (This link includes access to AWWA’s “Trending in an Instant” guide and more)

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