Pewaukee approves $40,900 pilot study to treat PFAS at Well 8

The Pewaukee Common Council approved a $40,900 pilot testing agreement on March 17 to evaluate methods for removing PFAS from municipal Well 8, city staff said.

Maggie, a city staff member, told the council city consultants vetted four vendors and recommended Water Surplus. "We are proposing to go ahead with, using Water Surplus," she said, noting the vendor had identified potential iron levels in the town’s water and proposed pretreatment to protect ion-exchange media. Maggie said the pilot is expected to run through September, though the schedule could extend because vendors typically wait for a breakthrough condition to evaluate media performance.

The pilot will include two columns run in parallel — one with pretreatment and ion exchange and one without — so staff can compare performance. Maggie said the testing equipment rental and related pilot costs total $40,900 and that the expense will be paid from the city’s water utility. She also said the city is not currently pursuing remediation of a separate, small Deer Haven shallow well because its low output (about 25 gallons per minute) would make a full treatment facility—estimated at roughly $3 million—uneconomical.

A council member moved to approve the Water Surplus pilot agreement "in the amount of $40,900 contingent on final approval from the city attorney," the agenda stated. The motion was seconded and approved by voice vote.

Maggie said staff chose the vendor in part because Water Surplus called out the iron content in the water, an issue other vendors did not highlight in their proposals, and because Water Surplus’s equipment appeared likely to fit inside the existing well facility’s garage area without exterior alterations. The study will inform whether full-scale treatment is necessary and, if so, what pretreatment and media configuration provide the best long-term removal of PFAS from Well 8.