ST PAUL, Minn. — A new state report finds that it could cost up to $28 billion over the next 20 years to rid some of the state's wastewater streams of "forever chemicals."
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) commissioned an independent study that determined it would cost between $14 and $28 billion to remove and destroy per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from certain wastewater streams. The report, which received funding from the Minnesota Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund, was prepared by Barr Engineering Company and Hazen and Sawyer.
MPCA said estimated costs are based on required upgrades to the state's wastewater infrastructure using current technology. There are new technologies in development, but MPCA said without an alternative source of funding, PFAS removal and destruction will remain "unaffordable."
“The exorbitant costs associated with removing PFAS from community wastewater systems underscores the need to address PFAS pollution long before it gets into the waste stream,” said MPCA Commissioner Katrina Kessler in a statement. “At no fault of their own, wastewater treatment facilities receive PFAS from a variety of sources and they cannot carry the burden of cleaning up the pollution. We must all focus on preventing PFAS from entering the environment in the first place.”
According to the MPCA, PFAS can enter wastewater through industrial processes, everyday use of commercial products (think 3M Scotchguard) or when products containing PFAS are dumped in landfills and compost sites. While wastewater treatment facilities have begun monitoring for PFAS, they currently don't have to the ability to remove and destroy the chemicals.
"States and municipalities across the country are also struggling with PFAS and needing to think about how to remove it effectively," Kessler said during a news conference Tuesday. "Not just at water treatment facilities...but also in wastewater facilities, so we believe that this can also help others beyond Minnesota."
Kessler said in order to pay for the proper technology, MPCA will need to work with lawmakers at both the state and federal levels. She added that implementing a PFAS ban could ultimately save money as well, making the cost skew closer to the report's lower $14 billion estimate.
"We recognize that it is part of our responsibility to bring this information forward to work with lawmakers, and then to raise awareness at the federal level as well," said Kessler.
The health impacts of PFAS exposure are still being studied around the world. According to a Minnesota Department of Health summary, prolonged "forever chemical" exposure has been linked to liver and thyroid ailments, immune response suppression and development issues in children.
A study by University of Southern California researchers found people with higher levels of PFAS in their bodies were more likely than others to develop liver cancer, but cautioned that larger studies are needed to gain a full understanding of the relationship between the chemicals and these ailments.
Maplewood-based 3M, which invented the ubiquitous nonstick chemical, has maintained that the levels in drinking water aren't sufficient to trigger adverse health effects. The company and the State of Minnesota reached an $850 million out-of-court settlement after the state sued, seeking the cost of cleanup of groundwater contaminated by PFAS chemicals that spread from 3M dump sites.
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