Revision: April 26, 2017, 9:21 a.m.
HB 485 - AS AMENDED BY THE HOUSE
9Mar2017... 0322h
2017 SESSION
17-0286
08/04
HOUSE BILL 485
AN ACT relative to standards for emerging contaminants in drinking water.
SPONSORS: Rep. Messmer, Rock. 24; Rep. Bean, Rock. 21; Rep. Malloy, Rock. 23; Rep. T. Le, Rock. 31; Rep. Cushing, Rock. 21; Rep. Berrien, Rock. 18; Rep. P. Gordon, Rock. 29; Rep. H. Marsh, Rock. 22; Sen. Bradley, Dist 3; Sen. Feltes, Dist 15; Sen. Fuller Clark, Dist 21; Sen. Innis, Dist 24; Sen. Soucy, Dist 18
COMMITTEE: Resources, Recreation and Development
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This bill requires the department of environmental services to use exposure scenarios in children and other vulnerable populations to determine ambient groundwater quality standards.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
9Mar2017... 0322h 17-0286
08/04
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Seventeen
AN ACT relative to standards for emerging contaminants in drinking water.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 New Subdivision; Contaminants in Drinking Water. Amend RSA 485 by inserting after section 16-d the following new subdivision:
Emerging Contaminants
485:16-e Emerging Contaminants of Concern. The commissioner, in consultation with the commissioner of the department of health and human services, shall annually identify pollutants of emerging concern to the public’s health relative to drinking water and ambient groundwater and shall adopt rules under RSA 541-A relative to drinking water standards pursuant to RSA 485:3, and ambient groundwater quality standards pursuant to RSA 485-C:6 which are applicable to such contaminants. For purposes of this section, contaminants of emerging concern shall mean any synthetic or naturally occurring chemical or any microorganism that is not commonly monitored in the environment but has the potential to enter the environment and cause known or suspected adverse ecological or human health effects. In establishing standards relative to such contaminants, the commissioner shall follow methodology pursuant to RSA 485-C:6.
485:16-f Perfluorochemicals and 1,4 Dioxane. The commissioner shall, in consultation with the commissioner of the department of health and human services, no later than 60 days from the effective date of this act, adopt rules under RSA 541-A relative to drinking water standards pursuant to RSA 485:3, and ambient groundwater quality standards pursuant to RSA 485-C:6 applicable to Perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS), Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA), and 1,4-dioxane. In establishing such standards, the commissioner shall follow methodology pursuant to RSA 485-C:6.
2 Ambient Groundwater Quality Standards. Amend RSA 485-C:6 to read as follows:
485-C:6 Ambient Groundwater Quality Standards.
I. The commissioner shall establish and adopt ambient groundwater quality standards for regulated contaminants which adversely affect human health or the environment. Ambient groundwater standards shall apply to all regulated contaminants which result from human operations or activities, but do not apply to naturally occurring contaminants. Where federal maximum contaminant level or health advisories have been promulgated under the Federal Safe Drinking Water Act or rules relevant to such act, ambient groundwater quality standards shall be [equivalent to] no less stringent than such standards. The commissioner may adopt standards more stringent than federal maximum contaminant levels or health advisories if, accounting for an adequate margin of safety to protect human health at all life stages, including but not limited to pre-natal development, the commissioner determines federal standards are insufficient for protection of human health. Where such standards are based upon non-cancer risk, the ambient groundwater quality standards shall be based on an oral reference dose and a relative source contribution factor of 20 percent. When the oral reference dose is based on an effect that can occur from early life exposure in animals or in humans, the drinking water ingestion rate used shall be 0.175 liters per kilogram body weight per day. Where such standards are based upon cancer risks, the ambient groundwater quality standards shall be equivalent to that exposure which causes a lifetime exposure risk of one cancer in 1,000,000 exposed population. Where no federal maximum contaminant level or health advisory has been issued, the commissioner may adopt ambient groundwater quality standards on a basis which provides for an adequate margin of safety to protect human health and safety.
II. Health advisories that are adopted as ambient groundwater quality standards shall be reviewed by the department at least every 3 years to determine if new research warrants revising the current ambient groundwater quality standard. If the department finds a revision is necessary they shall begin rulemaking to adopt the revised standard within 60 days of such finding.
III. Ambient groundwater quality standards shall be the water quality basis for issuance of groundwater discharge permits under RSA 485-A:13.
[III.] IV. Except for discharges of domestic wastewater regulated under RSA 485-A:13 and RSA 485-A:29, no person shall violate ambient groundwater quality standards.
3 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
17-0286
Revised 4/24/17
Amended 4/12/17
HB 485-FN- FISCAL NOTE
AS AMENDED BY THE HOUSE (AMENDMENT #2017-0322h)
AN ACT relative to standards for emerging contaminants in drinking water.
FISCAL IMPACT: [ X ] State [ X ] County [ X ] Local [ ] None
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STATE: | FY 2018 | FY 2019 | FY 2020 | FY 2021 |
Appropriation | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Expenditures | Indeterminable Increase | Indeterminable Increase | Indeterminable Increase | Indeterminable Increase |
Funding Source: | [ X ] General [ ] Education [ ] Highway [ ] Other | |||
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COUNTY: |
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Revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Expenditures | Indeterminable Increase | Indeterminable Increase | Indeterminable Increase | Indeterminable Increase |
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LOCAL: |
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Revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Expenditures | Indeterminable Increase | Indeterminable Increase | Indeterminable Increase | Indeterminable Increase |
METHODOLOGY:
This bill requires the Department of Environmental Services (DES), in consultation with the Department of Health and Human Services, to annually identify contaminants of emerging concern and adopt drinking water and groundwater standards for them, using prescribed criteria. It also requires DES to set standards, using the prescribed criteria, for three specific contaminants within 60 days of passage. Finally, the bill requires ambient groundwater standards set based on health advisories be reviewed at least every 3 years to see if new research is available and to update any such standard within 60 days if it is determined there is a need to do so.
DES currently relies on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to identify and determine appropriate health advisories for emerging contaminants. Under this bill, DES would need to perform the research and analysis currently conducted by the EPA to execute the provisions of this bill. DES states it would incur costs resulting from new equipment, contractual expertise, and lab space. Further the DES would need to hire at least eight new staff that includes:
DES estimates state expenditures, resulting from the aforementioned costs, will increase by approximately $1.19 million in FY 2018, $1.18 million in FY 2019, $1.20 million in FY 2020, and $1.21 million in FY 2021.
DES will also be required to set the drinking water standards and the ambient groundwater quality standards (AGQS) for PFOA (perfluorooctanoic acid) and PFOS (perfluorooctanesulfonate) to 20 parts per trillion (ppt), as compared to the current AGQS of 70 ppt. These compounds have historically been broadly used in domestic and commercial products and are ubiquitous in the environment at low concentrations. Due to this, DES assumes that for many instances where these contaminants are detected above 20 ppt, no responsible party will be identified. Consequently, all levels of government are likely to incur costs related to contaminated drinking water and groundwater. DES assumes the new, lower drinking water and ambient groundwater standards will have a significant impact on municipalities and a lesser impact on the state and counties in three areas:
DES' cost estimates at the state, county, and local level, resulting from sampling, monitoring, treatment, operations and maintenance, and remediation costs, are included in the following table. Assumptions and specific details are discussed in more detail in the paragraphs following the table.
| FY 2018 | FY 2019 | FY 2020 | FY 2021 | |
State | Waste Water Sampling 1 | $ 50,000 | $ 300,000 | $ 300,000 | $ 300,000 |
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County | Waste Water Sampling 1 | $ 200,000 | $ 1,200,000 | $ 1,200,000 | $ 1,200,000 |
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Local | Waste Water Sampling 1 | $ 1,500,000 | $ 9,000,000 | $ 9,000,000 | $ 9,000,000 |
Public Water System Analytical Costs 2 | $ 2,400,000 | $ - | $ - | $ - | |
Public Water System Treatment 3 | $ - | $ 44,200,000 | $ - | $ - | |
Public Water System Operations and Maintenance 4 | $ - | $ 1,370,000 | $ 1,370,000 | $ 1,370,000 | |
Landfill Analytical/Monitoring 5 | $ 200,000 | $ 150,000 | $ 150,000 | $ 150,000 | |
Landfill Operations and Maintenance 6 | $ - | $ 100,000 | $ 100,000 | $ 100,000 | |
Landfill Monitoring Well Installation 7 | $ - | $ 300,000 | $ - | $ - | |
Landfill Remediation Costs 8 | $ - | $ - | $ 1,000,000 | $ 1,000,000 | |
Local Total | $ 4,350,000 | $ 56,620,000 | $ 13,120,000 | $ 13,120,000 | |
ASSUMPTIONS: | |||||
Public Drinking Water: Once a drinking water standard, known as a maximum contaminant level, is set for a contaminant, 1,200 of the State's 2,500 public water systems must routinely sample for the chemical. Initially, quarterly sampling is required for most contaminants. If the maximum contaminant level is exceeded, the source of water must be treated, blended or taken offline so as to comply with the standard. The bill requires DES to reduce the level of combined PFOA and PFOS from 70 parts per trillion (ppt) to 20 ppt. Based on sampling done voluntarily by public water systems and sampling done by DES at systems in proximity to potential sources of PFOS and PFOA, DES assumes that 5% (60) of the 1,200 public water systems will exceed the new maximum contaminant level.
Publicly Owned Wastewater Treatment Facilities: There are over 40 publicly owned wastewater treatment facilities that discharge treated effluent to groundwater. These facilities are currently prohibited from discharging wastewater that exceeds a maximum contaminant level or ambient groundwater standard. DES concludes, based on the limited data available on wastewater, that most of these facilities’ wastewater would exceed the new standards for PFOA and PFOS. This will require additional treatment of the wastewater. Groundwater around many of these sites will likely exceed the new standards for PFOA and PFOS and these site owners will have to develop response plans, drill and sample additional monitoring wells, expand groundwater discharge zones and implement remedial measures to address these exceedances. DES estimates that one (1) state-owned system and 75% of six (6) county systems and 40 municipal systems will incur, on average, $50,000 of additional first-year costs; and $300,000 of annual costs each year thereafter.
Publicly Owned Landfills/Waste Sites: There are over 100 closed landfills in New Hampshire owned by municipalities that have ongoing groundwater quality monitoring. Based on data from five landfills in New Hampshire that have been sampled for PFOA and PFOS, and published literature, the majority of landfills will be impacted by lowering the standard from 70 ppt to 20 ppt. Additional costs at these sites may be incurred due to increased groundwater sampling, installation of additional monitoring wells, expansion of groundwater management zones, and designing and implementing new groundwater remediation plans. DES assumes 100 facilities will perform initial monitoring ($2,000 per facility); that 75 will need to include PFOA and PFOS in routine monitoring ($2,000 each year); that 10 will need to install additional monitoring wells ($30,000 per facility); and that five facilities will have to implement remedial measures ($200,000 per facility).
The New Hampshire Municipal Association states that to the extent this bill results in stricter standards for public drinking water supplies, this will increase costs, for municipalities that have municipal water supplies, by an indeterminable amount. There will be no impact on local revenue.
The Department of Health and Human Services states this bill requires the Department, in consultation with DES, to annually identify pollutants of emerging concern to the public's health relative to drinking water. The Department does not currently have a position or staff member with this subject matter expertise. The Department states it would need to hire a Toxicologist V (LG 32, step 3) at an estimated annual cost of $111,000 in both FY 2018 and FY 2019 and $117,000 in FY 2020 and $118,000 in FY 2021.
The New Hampshire Association of Counties states this bill will have no impact on county expenditures or revenue.
AGENCIES CONTACTED:
Department of Environmental Services, Department of Health and Human Services, New Hampshire Municipal Association, and New Hampshire Association of Counties