State regulators are waging a multi-pronged campaign to tackle PFAS contamination from industrial sources, but they say funding from consent orders and existing EPA programs isn’t enough
By Jacob Wallace, Waste Dive
NEW YORK – State regulators say they need the federal government to direct more financial support to water systems struggling with PFAS contamination. The total costs to implement destruction and control technologies nationwide will be in the billions, speakers at the annual Summit on PFAS Regulation, Compliance, and Litigation in New York City said on Thursday.
Katrina Kessler, a commissioner with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, said the federal government may need to consider a fee system or other revenue-generating authority from upstream producers of PFAS chemicals in order to ensure the cost doesn’t fall entirely on taxpayers.
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While she is “sympathetic” to passive receivers of contaminated material, such as wastewater treatment plants and landfills, Kessler said she’s worried about shrinking the pool of facilities that can be held responsible for shouldering the costs.
“Frankly, this administration likes to talk about polluter pays, but I’m not seeing a lot of leadership on the polluter pays side,” Kessler said. “How are states and local governments going to meet the costs without bankrupting small towns across the country without a true polluter pays model?”
