ECUA meets new EPA regulations to reduce forever chemicals in Pensacola drinking water - WEAR

ECUA meets new EPA regulations to reduce forever chemicals in Pensacola drinking water

PENSACOLA, Fla. -- Throughout the years we told you about PFAs, also known as forever chemicals.

The CDC has linked these chemicals to cancer, liver issues, and pregnancy problems.

These chemicals are found in products like non-stick cookware, food packaging, and firefighting foam. They are also found in our water.

Many water wells in the Pensacola area have been tested including near Saufley Field.

The Environmental Protection Agency now has new regulations to lower the levels of PFAs.

The agency is requiring public water systems to monitor and lower any PFAs levels that don’t meet the new lowered levels within five years.

PFAs or forever chemicals have been a concern across the country for years.

The Environmental Protection Agency has created regulations for forever chemicals in drinking water.

The agency has new lowered levels for six PFAs types that must be met by 2029.

Bruce Woody is the director of the Emerald Coast Utilities Authority.

He says the utility had already been monitoring PFAs before the new regulations came out.

Woody tells me most of their wells have a filtration system called granular activated carbon or GAC.

He says GAC filters out any PFAs and other chemicals.

"As of now, when the regulations came out 14 of our wells already had that filtration equipment on it," Woody said. "By the end of this year, that number will be 16 and we have plans in place to be well ahead of the deadline for the other locations. We have several wells by that either have non-detect or are already below that four parts per trillion number.”

Woody says their water system is tested often.

"Daily samples are taken from the raw water being extracted from wells as well as the finished water after the treatment process to make sure we know what’s coming out of the well as well what the treated finished water is before it goes into the system," Woody said.

He says the utility is working to place more GAC filters on the remaining water wells.

Woodys says part of that funding is coming from a settled lawsuit with a company linked to creating forever chemicals.