NDDEQ given loans for water, sewer projects; continues to investigate PFAS levels

Feb. 26—BISMARCK — The North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality, with the help of the North Dakota Public Finance Authority, has awarded six loans in the past two months to water and sanitary sewer projects in the state, a news release said.

Two of these loans were awarded to Aneta, North Dakota, in support of its work to fix and replace water and sanitary sewer mains. The city received a $930,000 Clean Water State Revolving Fund loan and a $1.57 million Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) loan. The project, the release said, will improve the water and sanitary sewer mains' reliability and reduce the number of emergency repairs.

The city of Maddock will also receive help enhancing its water treatment plant with a $9.7 million DWSRF loan given to the Central Plains Water Resource District. This project will include a new transmission line from the plant to a nearby reservoir, as well as allow for more customers and address supply issues with current customers, the release said.

The Department of Environmental Quality also published a release saying it is continuing to check for Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) contamination in public water systems across the state, which could have come from aqueous film forming foam used by firefighters, especially at fire training sites. The release said no public water systems sampled so far have levels exceeding EPA-proposed drinking water limits. The Department is also not aware of any private wells in the state testing positive for PFAS.

PFAS, also referred to as "forever chemicals," are synthetic chemicals used in some materials like carpet treatments, non-stick cookware and fire fighting foams. These chemicals' adverse effects on health are still being studied, the release said. Ones that are known so far include developmental effects on fetuses, cholesterol level changes, immune system problems and cancer.