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DEP outlines PFAS sampling, provisional cleanup levels and disposal concerns
Summary
The Department of Environmental Protection described its statewide PFAS monitoring, provisional groundwater and soil cleanup target levels, sampling at fire-training and other state sites, and the regulatory timeline tied to pending EPA MCLs and state statute.
John Truitt, deputy secretary of regulatory programs at the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, briefed the committee on DEP’s PFAS work and the federal regulatory context. He summarized federal Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR) sampling, DEP’s development of provisional groundwater and soil cleanup target levels, and the agency’s sampling results at state-managed sites.
Truitt said UCMR monitoring in 2013–2015 and later rounds informed state sampling. He explained that EPA’s 2016/2018 lifetime health advisory of 70 parts per trillion (ng/L) and the EPA’s April 2024 proposed maximum contaminant level of 4 parts per trillion for individual PFOA and PFOS frame the issue. Truitt noted the proposed federal MCL is under litigation and that the legislature set a statutory backstop (section 376.91) requiring DEP to adopt standards if EPA has not done so by Jan. 1, 2026.
DEP reported that many fire-training facilities and state-funded cleanup sites show elevated PFAS. Truitt said 27 of 30 training facilities exceeded the agency’s provisional groundwater cleanup target level and 29 of 30 were above at least one PFAS analytic threshold. DEP has sampled 43 state-funded cleanup sites and found several exceedances. Where private wells or rural systems are affected, Truitt said DEP installs home filtration systems or provides bottled water until longer-term solutions are in place.
Truitt highlighted disposal and cost concerns: if certain PFAS waste streams are regulated as hazardous waste, disposal options in-state would be limited and off-site shipping could significantly raise disposal costs. He described the rulemaking path, public comment opportunities under chapter 120 and required Environmental Regulatory Commission review for cleanup standards.
Committee members asked whether all public water systems will be required to test (DEP answered that UCMR rounds require testing on public water systems as set by EPA) and how private well owners are served (DEP said affected private wells receive testing and may receive filters under the program). DEP urged stakeholders to participate in upcoming rulemaking if federal standards are not finalized.
