Monitoring and Occurrence of PFAS in Drinking Water | AAAS EPI Center
PFAS Contamination of Drinking Water Several of the most-researched per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have been linked to human health issues at small doses and detected in drinking water and drinking water sources throughout the United States. A class of thousands of synthetic organic chemicals, PFAS are found in a variety of industrial and consumer applications from clothing and food wrappers to firefighting foam and after decades of use, PFAS contamination is widespread 1 . The chemical properties of PFAS, particularly the strength of the carbon-fluorine bonds, make them difficult to treat and remove using conventional water treatment processes. This guide describes how communities can evaluate the risk of PFAS contamination by leveraging existing data and conducting sampling of water and other environmental matrices (e.g., soil) to identify potential PFAS sources that may need remediation. For more information on the basics of PFAS chemical properties, toxicity, and more, please see the AAAS EPI Center’s PFAS and Drinking Water: A Scientific Overview. Evaluating PFAS occurrence in drinking water requires a robust monitoring plan. A PFAS monitoring plan should consider sampling locations, frequencies, cost, and other water quality parameters. Potential sampling locations include drinking water distribution systems, drinking water treatment plants (referred to as WTPs), and WTP source waters. PFAS monitoring can occur over a period of months to years, depending on location, number of contamination sources, and watershed characteristics. PFAS analysis can be costly since limited analytical techniques are available to measure PFAS levels in water and because the cost for analysis can range from $200 to $350 per water sample. Monitoring additional water quality parameters is also important since these can help identify contamination sources and influence the efficacy of different treatment approaches. PFAS Contamination Calls for a “One Water” Approach While the focus of this guide is to examine the impacts of PFAS on drinking water, the persistent nature of PFAS make them ubiquitous in the water cycle. For that reason, addressing PFAS contamination requires a holistic approach that considers more than just drinking water alone. The One Water concept is a holistic approach to more effectively manage drinking water, wastewater, stormwater, surface water, and groundwater together. PFAS epitomize “One Water” contaminants; they are present in all parts of the water cycle and will concentrate over time. Evaluating PFAS from a One Water perspective allows scientists and engineers to understand PFAS migration from a source into the environment and determine the best management point . WTPs typically utilize groundwater or surface water as raw water sources for treatment. After the drinking water is used by the community, it is conveyed to municipal wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) through sewer systems. Once treated through the WWTP, the water is discharged into surface waters, which may serve as drinking water supplies for downstream communities after some time in the environment. The One Water concept is illustrated as a simplified schematic shown in Figure 1 .
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