The Wisconsin PFAS Action Council (WisPAC) recently issued a state-wide action plan for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The action plan includes recommendations to Governor Evers and was developed by a committee that included representatives from each state level department and the public. The plan relied on four guiding principles: environmental justice, health equity, innovation, and pollution prevention. Focusing on these four principles, WisPAC developed eight categories of recommendation, including numeric standard development for a variety of media (such as soil, groundwater, and drinking water), sampling, pollution prevention, public engagement (information and data collection results), research, phasing out PFAS, future investment identification, and actions to identify and address historical discharges.
Specific recommendations items that may soon affect Barr’s clients include sampling of wastewater treatment plants, management of PFAS-containing landfill leachate, creation of a publicly facing online database showing all PFAS impacts within the state, discontinuation of the use of aqueous film forming foam (AFFF) containing PFAS, and phasing out PFAS from products in the state.
The action plan is an important step as the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) is currently in the process of developing and implementing criteria for two PFAS compounds in the waters of the state (drinking water, groundwater and surface water). Additional PFAS compounds were recommended for consideration in the WDNR’s next iteration of rulemaking. The current rulemaking effort is anticipated to be reviewed by the legislature in Spring 2022, with an anticipated effective date of Summer 2022.
Barr has assisted clients in understanding their risk profile and developing remediation strategies for PFAS in their industrial processes, legacy use of AFFF, and PFAS in waste streams.
Click the link below to read the PFAS action plan, and please contact Kevin Eisen (keisen@barr.com) or Erik Boleman (eboleman@barr.com) with questions about the plan or Wisconsin’s PFAS regulations.