Draft Interim Recommendations for Addressing Groundwater Contaminated with PFOA and PFOS
Draft Interim Recommendations for addressing groundwater
The EPA is seeking public comment on a draft set of recommendations for cleaning up groundwater contaminated with PFOA and PFOS. When finalized, the recommendations will provide a starting point for making site-specific cleanup decisions. The guidance is based on the EPA’s current scientific understanding of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) toxicity and is intended to provide clear and consistent guidance for federal cleanup programs, including the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA, commonly referred to as “Superfund”). This information may also be useful for state and tribal cleanup programs, and in carrying out other federal regulatory authorities (e.g., federal facility cleanup programs, approved state Resource Conservation and Recovery Act corrective action programs).
The guidance provides recommendations on:
- Screening levels, which are used to determine if levels of contamination may warrant further investigation;
- Preliminary remediation goals (PRGs) to inform site-specific cleanup levels for PFOA and PFOS contamination of groundwater that is a current or potential source of drinking water. PRGs are initial targets for cleanup, which may be adjusted on a site-specific basis as more information becomes available.
Comments are welcome on any part of the guidance, including the use of EPA’s Lifetime Drinking Water Health Advisory level of 70 ng/L or parts per trillion as the recommended PRG for groundwater, or whether higher or lower values would be supported.
SUBMITTING COMMENTS:
This document will be open for public comment for 45-days from 04/25/2019 to 06/10/2019.
Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OLEM-2019-0229, at https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting comments. Once submitted, comments cannot be edited or removed from Regulations.gov. The EPA may publish any comment received to its public docket. Do not submit electronically any information you consider to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Multimedia submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be accompanied by a written comment. The written comment is considered the official comment and should include discussion of all points you wish to make. The EPA will generally not consider comments or comment contents located outside of the primary submission (i.e. on the web, cloud, or other file sharing system). For additional submission methods, the full EPA public comment policy, information about CBI or multimedia submissions, and general guidance on making effective comments, please visit: http://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stiven Foster, Office of Land and Emergency Management, Environmental Protection Agency; telephone number: 202-566-1911; [email protected]