PFAS: Investigating Inputs to Wastewater Treatment Plants (webinar)

Note: This webinar is presented for informational purposes. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of each of the NEWMOA-member states, and the strategies and technologies discussed should not be considered an endorsement by NEWMOA or its members.

Logan Hayes, California DTSC presented Cosmetics Contribute to PFAS at Wastewater Treatment Plants in California’s Dense Urban Environments [PDF]. Cosmetics make up one of the consumer product categories most widely known to contain PFAS. Because of the way cosmetics are used, most of the PFAS present in these products are likely to reach wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). However, the majority of PFAS present as intentional ingredients in cosmetics cannot be quantified with the available analytical methods. To address this issue, we developed a methodology to estimate the total PFAS mass in cosmetics as well as the corresponding mass of total organic fluorine and of fluorinated side chains associated with PFAA precursors, using various ingredient databases and ingredient concentrations reported by manufacturers.

Anne Tavalire, Michigan EGLE presented Reducing PFAS Discharged to Wastewater Treatment Plants: the Michigan Experience [PDF]. The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) launched the Industrial Pretreatment Program (IPP) PFAS Initiative in February 2018.  The IPP Initiative was the first of its kind and aimed to reduce and eliminate certain PFAS from industrial sources that may pass through municipal WWTPs and enter our lakes and streams, potentially causing fish consumption advisories or contaminating public drinking water supplies.  This presentation covered the major sources of PFAS identified through the Initiative, actions taken by WWTPs and industrial users to reduce or eliminate PFAS discharged, and the dramatic reductions of PFOS  observed in WWTP effluent/biosolids and surface water as a results of source control.

View the webinar recording:

For more information, contact Jennifer Griffith at jgriffith@newmoa.org.