Laserfiche WebLink
PFAS Legislation <br />December 21, 2021 <br />Page 2 <br />2 <br />3 <br />5 <br />1 <br />replenishes much of Orange County’s groundwater that may be used for water supplies <br />or for private drinking water wells. <br />Testing of Santa Ana River surface water in Orange County has detected PFAS. These <br />results can partially be explained by the presence of PFAS in upstream treated <br />wastewater discharges from sewage treatment facilities in Riverside and San Bernardino <br />counties. PFAS ends up in wastewater by rinsing products containing the chemicals, <br />which go down the drain and into waste treatment plants. While these are locations that <br />can introduce PFAS into the water system, it is important to remember that people can <br />also be exposed to PFAS through food, food packaging, consumer products, and house <br />dust. <br />In the 2000s, manufacturers began voluntarily phasing out use of PFOA and PFOS under <br />a federal Environmental Protection Agency program. Although most PFAS chemicals are <br />no longer manufactured in the United States, they still are produced in other countries <br />and products that contain them may be imported, such as carpets, leather and apparel, <br />textiles, paper and packaging, coatings, rubber, and plastics. <br />Current scientific research suggests that exposure to high levels of PFAS may lead to <br />adverse health outcomes. However, research is still ongoing to determine how PFAS <br />exposure can lead to a variety of health effects. Research is also underway to better <br />understand the health effects associated with low levels of exposure to PFAS over <br />long periods of time, especially in children. <br />More information about the effects of PFAS are available on the Environmental <br />Protection Agency's website: www.epa.gov/pfas/pfas-explained. <br />Resolution Supporting Federal PFAS Legislation that Protects Ratepayers and <br />Water/Wastewater Agencies <br />Attached for consideration by the City Council is a resolution (Exhibit 1) that supports the <br />principles that public health benefits of new drinking water standards are reasonably <br />balanced with the compliance costs that water system ratepayers will ultimately incur. <br />Further, this resolution calls upon the Orange County delegation to support this and <br />related policy positions to protect ratepayers and water/wastewater agencies. <br />ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT <br />There is no environmental impact associated with this action. <br />FISCAL IMPACT <br />There is no fiscal impact associated with this action. <br />EXHIBIT(S) <br />1. Resolution