Royal Spring wellhead protection committee warns of vulnerabilities: PFAS, fuel tanks, pervious pavement and sewer overflows cited

Ben Krebs, an engineer with the Georgetown-Scott County Planning Commission, and committee members briefed the Stormwater Stakeholder Advisory Committee on the Royal Spring aquifer, its importance as a raw water source, and ongoing wellhead protection work.

Krebs said Royal Spring is among the largest natural springs in Kentucky and supplies a 4,000,000-gallon-per-day treatment plant serving roughly 16,000 customers in Georgetown and Scott County. "This is where runoff stormwater runoff becomes drinking water," he said, stressing that contaminants entering the Cane Run watershed can reach the spring in hours to days depending on conditions.

Committee role and limits: the Royal Spring wellhead protection committee reviews projects proposed within the protection area and makes recommendations to the local planning authorities; it does not have regulatory enforcement authority. The committee’s action plan was developed in cooperation with Fayette and Scott counties and approved by the Kentucky Division of Water in February 2003 under the state groundwater protection framework (committee referenced the regulation as "401 KAR").

Primary concerns and guidance: committee members said they consistently recommend against locating underground fuel-storage tanks or gas stations in the recharge area because those tanks have historically produced the most detrimental impacts to the drinking-water supply. The committee also listed chemical-handling uses, sanitary-sewer overflows and certain stormwater measures as potential risks. While pervious pavement and underground detention are recognized stormwater tools, the committee said those approaches can create direct pathways to the aquifer and have allowed contamination to go undetected in past incidents; members described a pervious-pavement spill that required excavation to remove contaminants.

PFAS and treatment capacity: when asked about per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a Kentucky American Water representative asked whether the committee had detected PFAS. A committee member said PFAS detections had occurred and that mitigation projects have received funding and are underway to meet upcoming regulatory deadlines.

Project reviews and improvements: the committee said it reviews development plans, construction documents, groundwater protection plans and environmental assessments and makes recommendations for groundwater protection plans, on-site treatment, regional water-quality treatment, stormwater management and spill containment. Committee members said they are working to develop written specifications, a pre-submission checklist for engineers and are considering retaining a groundwater protection consultant to assist with complex proposals.

Coordination and monitoring limitations: presenters emphasized strong coordination with local water-quality staff and noted that some projects (for example, state road or interstate projects) do not routinely come through local planning review. The committee said it does not itself perform routine monitoring and relies on LFUCG (Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government) and state programs for inspections and compliance.

Krebs summed up: protecting Royal Spring requires cautious review of high-risk land uses in the recharge area and clearer written guidance for project proponents; the committee can recommend protective measures to planning agencies but does not issue permits or enforcement actions.