Mitigation engineer provides PFAS update
Free drinking water now available outside the Brittany Drive treatment plant.
InSite Engineering Principal Engineer and CEO Bryan Pate was in town to provide an update to city officials and citizens about the ongoing “forever chemical” mitigation process.
Like a host of other municipalities across the nation, the City of Calhoun has been attempting to find ways to significantly reduce traces of per- and polyfluorinated substances (PFAS) in its drinking water supply. PFAS are more often called “forever chemicals” due to the difficulty in removing them from the environment once they enter.
In November, InSite was awarded a contract to design removal systems at current city water treatment facilities using a Emerging Contaminants Georgia Environmental Finance Authority grant.
Since InSite began its engineering process locally, the city has had ongoing pilot studies at its facilities to determine best practices for long-term PFAS mitigation.
A short-term solution that has already shown to reduce PFAS in test results has been the installation of several granular activated carbon filters at city water plants.
Pate says engineers are currently testing both carbon and ion exchange filtration systems in Calhoun, and will also test carbon and ion exchange systems together.
“We’ll use every combination we can to try and find the correct solution for Calhoun,” Pate said.
Pate said what makes the PFAS issue so difficult for municipalities is the number ways the chemicals make their way into the environment and eventually into water sources.
As far as individual residential
water filtration systems, Pate said consumers just have to make sure they follow all manufacturer guidelines.
“The issue you have with the carbon filter is that if you don’t change the carbon out, once it absorbs enough PFAS material, at some point it becomes full,” Pate said. “Once it becomes full, it begins to slough off, and you can actually increase your exposure to PFAS by not changing your filter out in time. That applies to the under sink filter, and to the filter in your refrigerator for the ice maker and water dispenser.”
“I’m a huge proponent that the water plant should produce potable water, and you shouldn’t have to make your own potable water at your home,” Pate said. “The responsibility of doing that should not lie with the consumer.”
Pate said citizens are okay to shower, bathe, and swim using the local water supply, and says, due to their nature, forever chemicals are not known to stick to pipes and other supply lines once lines are flushed with clean filtered water.
He also said that bottled water as an alternative is not always a reliable solution due to that industry being regulated by the Food and Drug Administration and not the EPA, thus involving
different testing methods and standards.
FREE DRINKING WATER
Following the most recent PFAS test results from samples taken at its Brittany Drive water treatment plant, Calhoun Utilities Monday began providing drinking water free of charge from a connection found near the entrance of the facility. The spout is open to any Gordon County resident and is identified with signage.
Following the final carbon filter installation at the plant, water from the Brittany Drive plant showed the following PFAS detections this month: PFOS — not detected, down from 13 ppt in March; PFOA — less than minimum reporting level of 1.8 ppt, down from 13 ppt in March; PFHxS — not detected, down from 2.9 ppt in March; PFNA — not detected, unchanged from March; HFPO-DA — not detected, unchanged from March; and a Hazard Index reading of 0.0033, down from 0.3357 in March.
Most Calhoun water customers west of Interstate 75 are served by the Mauldin Road plant, while customers east of the interstate are served by the Brittany Drive facility.
On April 10, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced its final National Primary Drinking Water Regulation for six PFAS. Under these federal regulations, affected entities like the City of Calhoun will have three years to complete initial PFAS
monitoring, and five years overall to implement solutions for the reduction of these chemicals while keeping their customers informed about the levels and their mitigation efforts.
The City of Calhoun is currently both a plaintiff and a defendant in multiple lawsuits in relation to forever chemicals.
CALHOUN: WATER
MATTERS
Hartwell Brooks and Kim Chapman spoke to the council about their recent efforts in starting a citizen group known as “Calhoun: Water Matters” to discuss and share information about local PFAS issues, and to engage in private testing of area water sources. The private group can be found on Facebook, and is open to locals looking to stay informed about water issues, according to organizers.
Brooks also spoke of the Emory University pilot study to test Calhoun and Rome residents later this year in order to gauge PFAS exposure — a study the Calhoun Times reported to readers earlier this month.
For more information about this study, visit emoryhercules.com/about online.
OTHER BUSINESS
In other business, the Calhoun City Council approved amendments to Part II of it Code of Ordinances, Appendix A — Zoning, Section 10.7 dealing with freestanding signs, repealing all conflicting ordinances
in order to fix an effective date.
Also approved was a Beer and Wine Package License request from Asif Khan for Mexican Mart, 198 Peters Street.
Finally, the council put a unanimous stamp of approval on the Georgia Municipal Association slate of District 1 Officers for Fiscal Year 2024-25 to include Rome City Commissioner Randy Quick as President, Trion Mayor Lanny Thomas as First Vice President, Cartersville Mayor Matt Santini as Second Vice President, and Rockmart Councilman Marty Robinson as Third Vice President.
The next meeting of the council is set for Monday, May 13, at the Depot, 109 S. King St. All regular meetings are open to the public.