Harmful ‘forever chemicals’ threaten small SC water systems. Can federal grants help?
The federal government says it has $23 million available to help small, struggling utilities in South Carolina cleanse drinking water of harmful “forever chemicals,’’ pollutants that are showing up in water across the country.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency made the announcement this week as part of a national effort to help the tiniest water systems deal with emerging contaminants, including forever chemicals that have been linked to cancer and other ailments.
All told, the federal government said it is making $2 billion available nationally for water systems as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. EPA Administrator Michael Regan discussed the effort while on a stop Monday in a North Carolina town that has registered forever chemicals in its drinking water.
The Carolinas, like many states, have scores of small utilities that experience difficulty meeting basic clean water requirements, such as keeping bacteria out of the water, much less stopping pollution like forever chemicals, more formally known as PFAS.
South Carolina’s struggles were detailed in a 2019 investigative series in The State that showed many small utilities were underfunded, understaffed and often unable to meet clean drinking water standards. While large utilities also have struggles, they often are better equipped to address drinking water problems, the newspaper reported.
The EPA’s announcement said funding for small utilities will come in the form of grants, a significant step because many small water systems don’t have the money to pay back loans for water system improvements, even at low interest rates.
“Too many American communities, especially those that are small, rural, or under served, are suffering from exposure to PFAS and other harmful contaminants in their drinking water,” Regan said in a news release. “Thanks to President Biden’s leadership, we are investing in America and providing unprecedented resources to strengthen our nation’s water infrastructure while safeguarding people’s health and boosting local economies.’’
The EPA made the announcement on the heels of a call by Republican Gov. Henry McMaster last month to spend $380 million in federal funds to help water, sewer and stormwater systems in the state’s rural areas.
U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., said in the EPA news release that federal efforts will help “correct the long-standing inequities and negative conditions that plague our rural and underserved communities. This investment of $23 million to address the dangerous forever chemicals permeating our water supplies will have innumerable positive impacts on the health and quality of life for many across our state.’’
PFAS chemicals, short for per and polyfluoroalkyl substances, were created more than 80 years ago and have an array of uses in products such as non-stick frying pans, water resistant clothing and firefighting foam. But in recent years, federal and state regulators have warned that exposure to PFAS can be harmful to people, particularly those who drink water or eat food laced with the chemicals. PFAS has leaked into the environment from industries, farms and military bases..
Among other things, the chemicals can decrease fertility in women, cause development effects in children, increase the risk of prostate and kidney cancer and reduce the ability of people’s immune systems to fight infections, according to the EPA.
The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control is investigating how widespread PFAS is in the Palmetto State. The agency recently released a report showing that virtually every river, stream and lake tested had some level of PFAS. The agency in 2020 found about 30 large utilities registered PFAS in drinking water. It is currently looking at PFAS contamination in fish.
So far, however, South Carolina has failed to enact stricter laws on forever chemicals, such as a limit on them in drinking water.
The Legislature dropped plans for a limit last year after utilities complained and argued for the state to wait on a federal standard. The EPA is planning to propose a limit, known as a maximum contaminant level, this spring, but critics have said South Carolina should have moved more aggressively because of the health threat from PFAS in drinking water.
PFAS has polluted drinking water wells at mobile home parks near Shaw Air Force Base in Sumter County, in addition to wells near agricultural fields that relied on sludge from a textile plant in Darlington County, state and federal regulators have found.
This story was originally published February 15, 2023 at 11:08 AM.
