A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
Water systems around the country have been finding so-called forever chemicals in their water supplies. The Environmental Protection Agency set new rules last year around cleaning up that contamination. KUNC's Rae Solomon reports on how some of the smallest water systems in rural areas are handling it.
(SOUNDBITE OF WATER RUNNING)
RENEE HOFFMAN: This is free (ph).
RAE SOLOMON, BYLINE: Renee Hoffman lives at the tiny Sleepy Bear Mobile Home Park on the outskirts of Steamboat Springs, Colorado. She says the water quality there was never anything to brag about.
HOFFMAN: You know, it just didn't taste great, and it had that kind of calcium buildup and stuff.
SOLOMON: But one day last year, she got a letter from the management that made her wary in a whole new way.
HOFFMAN: This drinking water notice came through, telling us that there was PFAS in the water, and then we stopped giving it to our animals, stopped using it to cook noodles and things like that. We just stopped using it altogether.
SOLOMON: The letter said the water exceeded the drinking water standards set by the EPA for polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. They're called forever chemicals because they don't break down naturally.
ZACH SCHAFER: PFAS are ubiquitous. They're used in countless products that we use every day...
SOLOMON: Zach Schafer is an environmental policy expert. He worked for the Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Water until January.
SCHAFER: ...Whether it's nonstick cookware or waterproof clothing.
SOLOMON: But research has linked them to a whole host of health issues, from cancer to damage to the liver and immune system.
SCHAFER: Based on the latest science, there really is no safe level of PFOA or PFOS in drinking water.
SOLOMON: That's bad news because the EPA estimates between 6 10% of the nation's utilities have excess PFAS levels. Under the EPA rule, water suppliers are responsible for getting the PFAS out of their water. Matt Holmes is with the National Rural Water Association. He says the smallest water systems have been struggling to engineer good solutions without a lot of manpower or money.
MATT HOLMES: Treating this contaminant is going to be extremely expensive for any system but certainly for rural and small communities. The fixed costs with those projects, of course, just have to be spread over a much smaller customer base, right? So it's going to be a generational type of investment.
SOLOMON: Now the Trump administration is giving water systems two extra years to eliminate some of the chemicals. It's also reconsidering the limits set on others. Holmes says rural water managers welcome the extra time, but it won't help with the biggest problem, the high cost of PFAS decontamination.
HOLMES: You've got systems that absolutely want to do the right thing, and nobody can figure out how to pay for it. The only way to do that is just with grant money, and that's not available.
SOLOMON: Billions had been set aside in the bipartisan infrastructure law passed in 2021 to help pay for the cleanup. But lawmakers in Washington are negotiating a slimmer budget bill, and those funds are now at risk, leaving rural water users exposed.
HOLMES: Certainly, customer rates are going to have to rise. Every time you do something like this, it has an impact on rates.
(SOUNDBITE OF WATER GURGLING)
SOLOMON: At the mobile home park, Renee Hoffman now hauls in filtered water she buys from a private treatment plant down the road. That's what she uses for everything, even her pets. It's a lot of work, and she's hoping to reestablish a relationship with her tap someday.
HOFFMAN: Nobody wants their rent to be raised, right? But if we were to secure a better water source for our long-term health, I think you just have to weigh the benefits of it and ante up, I guess.
SOLOMON: She says, she'd like to brush her teeth or wash the dishes without worrying that the water could make her sick. For NPR News, I'm Rae Solomon in Steamboat Springs.
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