New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Releases New Water Quality Guidance Standards
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) released new water quality guidance values on Oct. 6 that will advance the State's regulation of emerging contaminants.
The contaminants are Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS), and 1,4-Dioxane (1,4-D), reported NYSDEC.
The state extended its public review period as agencies weigh new guidelines, however, and bottled water will be regulated too, reported HudsonValley360.
According to NYSDEC, the new guidance values are established in a draft addendum to Technical and Operational Guidance Series (TOGS), Ambient Water Quality Standards and Guidance Values and Groundwater Effluent Limitations.
There is also a draft revision to TOGS 1.3.7: Analytical Detectability and Quantitation Guidelines for Environmental Parameters (PDF) and a new, draft TOGS 1.3.13: Permitting Strategy for Implementing Guidance Values for PFOA, PFOS, and 1,4-Dioxane (PDF).
The proposed guidance value can be read here.
A Long Island environmental group, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER), released a map of where PFAS chemicals are being used at industrial facilities across the state.
Organizations representing local governments, parents, and teachers, and communities are urging New York Governor Kathy Hochul to sign a bill that would mandatet additional water quality testing of these chemicals, reported WBFO NPR.
This bill is sponsored by State Senator James Skoufis and Assembly Health Committee Chair Richard Gottfried. The mandate would require statewide testing for 40 toxic emerging contaminants. The bill also applies to all water utilities, reported The Record.
"New York has been at the forefront of taking actions to reduce human and environmental exposure to emerging contaminants like PFOA, PFOS, and 1,4-Dioxane,” said Commissioner Seggos, reported NYSDEC. “Today, DEC is bolstering the strict levels adopted by the Department of Health to protect our drinking water by issuing guidance values for PFOA, PFOS, and 1,4-Dioxane for ground and surface waters. These guidance values will protect the health of our communities and the environment by helping to prevent these emerging contaminants from entering our drinking water supplies."
