Ohio EPA to begin testing for ‘forever chemicals’ in drinking water

Credit: DaytonDailyNews

The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency will start testing the state’s more than 1,500 public water systems for so-called “forever chemicals..”

The announcement comes on the heels of the U.S. EPA’s announcement that it will begin regulating chemicals known as PFAS.

RELATED: Contaminants in Dayton water above what some states consider safe

Testing started early in February with several trials, and now the state is ready to officially begin the process, Ohio EPA spokeswoman Heid Griesmer said.

The testing is part of Ohio’s PFAS action plan for drinking water, which was released in December. Last summer, Gov. Mike DeWine directed the state EPA and health department to develop the plan in an effort to address potential threats to both public and private drinking water systems.

PFAS, or per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances, were once widely used in manufacturing, carpeting, upholstery, food packaging and other commercial and military uses. Notably, the substances were — and still are, in some places — used to extinguish fires that couldn’t be extinguished with water alone.

DETAILS: Brown, senators pressing EPA to combat exposure to forever chemicals

MORE COVERAGE: Montgomery County saw record water main breaks. How it will fix its aging systems

As part of the testing, the Ohio EPA will collect samples from the state’s 1,500 drinking water systems to determine if PFAS is present. About 250 daycare facilities and schools that have their own public water systems are being tested first, according to the Ohio EPA.

“Children are considered a sensitive population when exposed to environmental contaminants like PFAS,” Ohio EPA Director Laurie A. Stevenson said in a statement. “We need to ensure the water that children drink at these schools and daycares is not contaminated with PFAS above the Ohio PFAS Action Levels.”

The state has not completed its schedule for when each municipality’s drinking water system will be tested, Griesmer said.

Ohio EPA hired three contractors to conduct the tests, Griesmer said. The contractors will collect the water samples, which will be sent to labs for testing, and the results will be given to the state.

Municipalities have the option of conducting their own tests and sending the results to the state, as long as they follow the same collection procedures and methods as Ohio EPA. They also must meet the quality assurance results and agree to allow the agency to post the results on its website, Griesmer said.

RELATED: What Dayton learned after the unprecedented water outage 1 year ago

The testing’s expected to be complete by the end of this year, and results will be posted at pfas.ohio.gov

READ MORE: Dayton sues PFAS manufacturers

PFAS has been linked to birth defects and other health risks, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

About the Author