Title
Resolution to Approve an Increase to the Purchase Order of Granular Activated Carbon (GAC) for Water Treatment Services from Calgon Carbon Corp, Bid No. ITB-4376 and Appropriate $850,000.00 from the Water Supply System (8 Votes Required)
Memorandum
The State of Michigan has recently launched its program to test all community drinking water systems in the State for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) by the end of 2018. The results from this testing program are beginning to be released, and there has been significant media attention. Ann Arbor has been mentioned in several articles as a city with PFAS measureable in both its source and drinking water, resulting in numerous inquiries from citizens regarding the measures the City is taking to address PFAS in the drinking water.
The City of Ann Arbor has been testing its drinking water for PFAS since 2014 and reporting the results in its Annual Water Quality Report. The maximum level of PFOA and PFOS detected in the City's drinking water in 2017 was 15 parts per trillion (ppt), which is well below the EPA's health advisory level of 70 ppt. However, based on a recently released study conducted by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), it is likely that future health advisories and/or regulation may be lower than the existing level.
The City of Ann Arbor's testing results from the State's program were released on August 29. These results indicate that the PFOS/PFOA levels found in the City's drinking water was 4 ppt and the total concentration from the 24 chemicals tested by the State was 39 ppt. It is important to note that while there is a health advisory for PFOS/PFOA, no advisory or health level has been determined for the additional 22 chemicals tested by the State.
Currently, granular activated carbon (GAC) filtration is the best available technology for removing PFAS from drinking water. The City has GAC filters, and the existing filters remove some of the PFAS. In ad...
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