A5301

An Act requiring the Department of Environmental Protection to conduct a study concerning the use of alternative water supply sources when perfluoroalkyl or polyfluoroalkyl substances exceed maximum contaminant levels.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. a. Within one year after the date of enactment of this section, the Department of Environmental Protection shall conduct, or cause to be conducted, a study concerning the use of alternative drinking water supply sources when perfluoroalkyl or polyfluoroalkyl substances exceed maximum contaminant levels. As part of the study, the department shall consider the drinking water supply sources available to public community water systems in the State and identify alternative drinking water supplies that may be available for use by public community water systems to provide water to the customers of the system when an exceedance of a maximum contaminant level for a perfluoroalkyl or polyfluoroalkyl substance is discovered.

b. In conducting the study required pursuant to this section, the department shall solicit input from representatives of public community water systems, academic institutions, and environmental organizations with expertise, knowledge, or experience in issues related to the State’s water supplies, and may hold public hearings, at a time and place determined by the department, to receive input on the issue.

c. The department shall prepare and submit to the Governor and, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), to the Legislature a written report containing the findings and recommendations of the study conducted, or caused to be conducted, pursuant to this section, including any proposals for legislation or other appropriate legislative or regulatory action. The department shall also make the study available on the department’s Internet website.

2. This act shall take effect immediately, and shall expire 30 days after the submittal of the report required pursuant to subsection c. of section 1 of this act.

STATEMENT

This bill would require the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to conduct, or cause to be conducted, a study concerning the feasibility of using of alternative drinking water supply sources when an exceedance of a maximum contaminant level (MCL) for perfluoroalkyl or polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) is discovered.

As part of the study, the DEP would consider the drinking water supply sources available to public community water systems in the State and identify alternative drinking water supplies that may be available for use by public community water systems to provide water to the customers of the system when an MCL exceedance for a PFAS substance is discovered. In conducting the study, the DEP would solicit input from representatives of public community water systems, academic institutions, and environmental organizations with expertise, knowledge, or experience in issues related to the State’s water supplies, and may hold public hearings, at a time and place determined by the department, to receive input on the issue. The bill requires the DEP to prepare and submit to the Governor and the Legislature a written report containing the findings and recommendations of the study, including any proposals for legislation or other appropriate legislative or regulatory action.

PFAS are man-made chemical compounds that have multiple fluorine atoms bonded to a chain of carbon atoms. Since the 1930s, PFAS have been widely used in countless consumer products because they repel oil, water, and grease. There are over 4,700 different types of PFAS, and new types are invented on a nearly daily basis. PFAS are commonly found in products such as polishes, waxes, paints, cleaning products, cookware, cosmetics, carpet treatments, fire extinguishing foam, dental floss, shampoos, waterproof clothing, food packaging, and even microwave popcorn. As a result, the presence of PFAS in the environment is widespread, and further exacerbated by multiple sources. The carbon-fluorine bond that forms PFAS is one of the strongest chemical bonds found in nature and does not break down under typical environmental conditions. As a result, PFAS are nicknamed “forever chemicals” because they accumulate, rather than break down, over time.

PFAS may enter the environment in the following ways: (1) the disposal of products containing PFAS in landfills, thereby contaminating the surrounding soil, groundwater, and source water; (2) the utilization of PFAS by manufacturing sites, which may result in contamination of the surrounding ground and surface waters; (3) the utilization of sludge byproducts containing PFAS on agricultural land, thereby leading to water and soil contamination; (4) the discharge of PFAS by wastewater treatment plants into source waters that service public drinking water systems; and (5) the contamination of private wells by groundwater containing PFAS. The widespread presence of PFAS in the water, soil, and air, results in the contamination not only of public drinking water systems and wells, but also of the food products humans and animals ingest. Many kinds of plants, fish, and livestock that are consumed daily by most Americans are commonly exposed to PFAS-contaminated water or food. Studies have indicated that exposure to PFAS, and the resulting buildup of PFAS in the human body, may be linked to certain harmful health effects in both humans and animals.

Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) were first developed in the 1940’s and are the two most commonly found PFAS in the environment and are also the two most studied and regulated PFAS. In 2018, the DEP adopted amendments to its Safe Drinking Water Act regulations to establish drinking water standards for a common PFAS, perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA), at a maximum contaminant level (MCL) of 13 parts per trillion. In 2020, the DEP adopted additional amendments to establish drinking water standards for PFOA at a MCL of 14 parts per trillion and for PFOS at a MCL of 13 parts per trillion.