September 3, 2021 at 5:40 p.m.
Baldwin praises community response to PFAS problem, says federal infrastructure funds could help
Baldwin praises community response to PFAS problem, says federal infrastructure funds could help
Baldwin also took time to commend Rhinelander for the cooperative way local officials and community members have approached the well issue since the PFAS contamination was discovered two years ago,
Rhinelander municipal wells 7 and 8 were taken offline in 2019 after PFAS levels were found to be above what the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) considers to be safe. This resulted in a loss of a quarter of the city's water capacity, city administrator Zach Vruwink, water utility foreman Tom Roeser and wastewater utility foreman Jim Gossage explained during the tour.
PFAS is a large group of man-made, fluorinated chemicals manufactured and used since the 1940s. Because PFAS are designed to be stable and unreactive to water, grease, heat, and other elements, they are often referred to as "Forever Compounds."
In addition, studies have shown a link between human exposure to PFAS and adverse health effects.
Following the well tour, Baldwin held a roundtable discussion with a group of area elected officials, interested residents, a UW-Madison professor who is acting as a consultant to the city, and others on Rhinelander's approach to the PFAS issue.
"I want to make sure that I spend a lot of this meeting listening, not talking," Baldwin said at the start of the discussion, which was held outside the pro shop at Northwood Golf Club. "But I want to tease you to start with the idea that right now we are poised to pass some really major legislation," she said, noting that both the bipartisan infrastructure legislation and the budget reconciliation act include a lot of water infrastructure provisions including "a very strong focus on PFAS from research and development, deployment, new technologies, technical and expert assistance..."
Rhinelander alderman Tom Barnett asked Baldwin for specifics as to what is in the infrastructure legislation that could help with Rhinelander's contaminated wells.
"Overall, there is about $55 billion - I'm going to talk big numbers, not what's coming to Rhinelander - $55 billion for water infrastructure spending," Baldwin said. "And that includes (an additional) $43 billion for state revolving loan funds, the SRF, which is the single largest tool the federal government uses to fund water and wastewater infrastructure projects in communities."
She also said that $23 billion will go toward traditional state revolving loan funds, increasing the state revolving loan authority by almost $14 billion and reducing the state's cost share by 10-percent for the first two years.
"Forty-nine-percent of the funding will be administered as grants and completely forgivable loans," Baldwin added.
This includes "a historic $10 billion to address PFAS contamination, $5 billion to be distributed through the state revolving loan fund," Baldwin said. "Five billion dollars going to small and disadvantaged community grant programs. States are not required to provide a cost share for that. And up to 100 percent of the funds may be utilized as grants."
"So is a $450 billion investment in water technology innovation. This is funding is aimed at finding, piloting and deploying drinking water and clean water technology advancements, and helping overcome risk adverseness among public utilities," she explained.
Baldwin also said that there is $50 million for grants to public water systems serving less than 100,000 people or other disadvantaged communities, for the purpose of deploying advanced technology.
"It requires EPA to review and report on the state of innovative water technology for drinking water and clean water," she noted.
"There is also an innovative water infrastructure workforce development programs," Baldwin added. "We don't have the workforce today to do all the ambitious things that this infrastructure plan wants to do."
She said solving that workforce shortage will be key, along with the addition of more affordable housing.
"There are housing components to the major infrastructure bill and there will be even more, I think, in the budget reconciliation bill," Baldwin said. "That is, of course, whether it will pass. I want to emphasize none of this has passed yet. And that means that anyone who thinks this is exciting and wants to use it, should call us. Call your congresspeople, and call up your other senator, and urge them how important this is."
"In terms of a commitment for technical assistance from the EPA, we also have language in the appropriations bill for the EPA to provide technical assistance to state, tribal and territorial and local partners that also depend on strong leadership to address areas of emerging environmental concern but no party alone can solve," she added.
Dr. James Tinjum of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Geo Engineering Laboratory, and the city's PFAS consultant, has been a key partner in studying the PFAS issue. He and a group of graduate students have done extensive research on the geology of the area around the wells to learn how the ground water flows in the area. They also tested the city's legacy landfill to eliminate it as a potential source of the contamination.
Also instrumental in the city's response was the creation of Water Action Team Rhinelander (WATR) which held public forums via streaming media that would bring in various speakers with information to share about the process.
Some of the WATR members participated in the discussion and Baldwin praised the open exchange of information and positive spirit of everyone involved.
"This is a community that is rolling up its sleeves and getting ready to face a challenge, not by pointing fingers but by getting to the reality of how do we come together to address PFAS in two of the wells," she said after the roundtable, adding that she was really pleased to be able to announce some "really, really forward-looking things we're looking at on the federal level to partner."
Baldwin said a city like Rhinelander would be a good candidate for some of the PFAS money in the infrastructure plan.
"There are communities across Wisconsin that are struggling with higher levels of PFAS," Baldwin said. "They can't do it alone, they need that federal partnership. So first of all, we're directing a significant sum of money to better understanding, researching and then finding and deploying technological solutions."
"But there is also an emphasis in helping smaller communities that don't have the tax base that some of our larger communities have to do things that are costly," she added. "Additional treatment at wells 7 and 8 is a multi-million dollar proposition. And a new well in an area that's got PFAS in the groundwater is also an above a million dollar proposition. So we're also designating some of these clean water funds for underserved and smaller communities that serve fewer than 100,000 customers."
Jamie Taylor may be reached via email at [email protected].
Comments:
You must login to comment.