Environmental Industry Updates
The Latest News on Scientific and Regulatory Updates from Merit Laboratories
The U.S. House passed the PFAS Action Act of 2021. The legislation would require the U.S. EPA to administer a national primary drinking water standard for PFAS chemicals within two years. Some of the specific bill highlights include restricting industrial discharges of PFAS; allocating $200 million annually for wastewater treatment; and limiting the incineration of PFAS wastes.
Years of underinvestment in Michigan’s infrastructure, including roads, bridges, dams, schools, transit, water and sewer systems, railways and energy systems, have left the state in a precarious position, according to the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) 2018 Report Card for Michigan's Infrastructure and the 21st Century Infrastructure Commission.
The State of Michigan strengthened its lead and copper rules for drinking water in June 2018, making it the strictest in the United States. As a result, sample collection methodology underwent some significant changes that must be adhered to by Community and Non-Community Water Supplies for lead and copper in drinking water.
Groundwater contaminated with PFAS in Marinette, Wisconsin is slated for environmental remediation. Marinette, a small town located in northeastern Wisconsin, is home to the headquarters of the Tyco Fire Products unit of Johnson Controls, Inc. (JCI). According to the Wisconsin DNR, the Marinette PFAS remediation will be the most expensive PFAS cleanup in the state. Some estimates place the cleanup effort at more than $140-million.
The State of Michigan has started posting PFAS testing results from the statewide drinking water initiative for schools using well water. The state has created a database of PFAS results for public review. The school drinking water results are posted here. The second part of the statewide initiative involves PFAS testing of public water supplies and these results are posted here.
