Hicksville, New York
In a groundbreaking move, New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo announced the adoption of a first-in-the-nation drinking water standard for the emerging contaminant 1,4-dioxane. The New York State Department of Health’s Public Health and Health Planning Council unanimously approved setting the maximum contaminant level of 1 part per billion* for 1,4-dioxane.
In addition, Governor Cuomo announced maximum contaminant levels for emerging contaminants PFOA and PFOS which are among the lowest in the nation at 10 parts per trillion**. These announcements follow a public comment period and approval by the Public Health and Health Planning Council. Every water provider in the state is required to meet all water quality requirements.
“The Nassau Suffolk Water Commissioners’ Association (NSWCA) applauds the clarity and definition brought to the situation in New York State,” commented NSWCA President Bill Schuckmann. “Certainly, the 21 voter-elected NSWCA members and other water providers throughout Long Island where we have a single source aquifer, have aggressively pursued getting treatment systems up and running. The treatment systems, Advanced Oxidation Process (AOP) and Granular Activated Carbon (GAC), are complex, and we are proud of the substantial progress that has been made to date in such a short amount of time.”
According to figures released by the Long Island Water Conference (LIWC), Long Island water providers have collectively spent more than $150 million to date to design and construct state-of-the-art treatment facilities with another $350 million to be spent in the next 12 months, and an additional $350 million to be spent within the next five years.
“This is an extremely important issue that we are tackling head on,” Mr. Schuckmann added. “Our responsibility is to deliver the best drinking water possible for all our communities. It’s that simple. The Long Island public can rest assured that we have been doing and will continue to do everything possible to fast-track each of these projects.”