OAK RIDGE, Tenn. — A proposed rule by the Environmental Protection Agency could raise rates for drinking water, some local utilities warn. The EPA is trying to limit the concentration of PFAs, or "forever chemicals" in drinking water.
The EPA said long-term PFAs exposure could weaken a person's ability to fight disease, and increase the risk of cancer and high cholesterol.
The FDA said the 80-year-old manmade chemicals are found in food and some studies have shown PFAs in people's blood.
"The rule will prevent thousands of deaths and reduce tens of thousands of serious PFAS-attributable illnesses," the EPA website said.
City of Oak Ridge Public Works leaders said Oak Ridge's last test found no concentration of PFAs, but the new proposed regulations call for testing at lower concentrations. Previous testing looked for PFAs in the parts per billion range, while proposed regulations call for testing in the parts per trillion range — a 1,000 times finer testing.
"You have a strong possibility of seeing something simply because there's been so much released into the environment," said Patrick Berge, Oak Ridge's Public Works Director.
Berge said, if the EPA imposes these new regulations, Public Works would have to figure out how to filter the PFAs out of the water and dispose of them safely.
"That would be an expense to the rate-payer," Berge said. "You can be talking anywhere from a few million to tens of millions."
Witt Utility District General Manager Ben Harris said the new proposed regulations would be difficult to follow.
"It will cost millions," Harris said.
The EPA said the changes are necessary to keep people safe from PFAS. The agency said it's targeting the end of this year for the final regulation.