Pompano Beach board backs 2025 water supply plan amendments to meet PFAS rules
Loading...
Summary
The Planning & Zoning Board recommended approval of comprehensive‑plan text amendments implementing the city’s 2025 Water Supply Facilities Work Plan. Presenters said PFAS treatment rules will require plant upgrades, a water‑use permit modification and rate funding paid by utility customers.
The Pompano Beach Planning & Zoning Board on Jan. 14 recommended that the City Commission adopt amendments to the comprehensive plan to implement the city’s 2025 Water Supply Facilities Work Plan, citing state planning requirements and the 2024 Lower East Coast water supply update.
Jean Dolan, development services staff, told the board the amendments update potable‑water and conservation policies to support a facilities work plan required by section 163.3177 of the Florida Statutes and the South Florida Water Management District plan. Angelica Gregory of Carollo Engineers presented technical details of the plan, including the city’s two Biscayne Aquifer well fields, participation in the C‑51 reservoir project, and a treatment plant with two parallel processes — lime softening (40,000,000 gallons per day) and membrane softening (10,000,000 gallons per day), for a combined treatment capacity of about 50,000,000 gpd.
Gregory said projected finished‑water demand is about 15,070,000 gpd in 2025, rising to roughly 17,650,000 gpd by 2035 and about 18.4 million gpd by 2045. She warned that federal and state rules for PFAS (the national primary drinking water rule, NPDWR) will change the ratio of raw to finished water and increase raw water needs, requiring upgrades to treatment and a modification of the city’s water‑use permit.
Renuka Mohammed, the city’s utilities director, told the board the cost of mandated PFAS treatment upgrades will largely be borne by ratepayers. “Those cost for the improvement … they do come from the rate payers,” Mohammed said, and noted the city adopted rate increases and issued bonds beginning in 2024 with further phased increases through 2028–29 to fund membrane treatment expansion.
The presentation also highlighted the city’s reuse system (OASIS), with a rated capacity of 7,500,000 gpd, current reuse demand about 2,570,000 gpd and projected reuse demand of 4,110,000 gpd by 2045. Gregory said the city operates 16 active conservation programs and credited reuse and conservation with helping reduce per‑capita finished water use from about 170 gpd in 2015 to 141 gpd today.
After staff answers to board and public questions about population projections, ocean outfall status and system pressures, a board member moved that the board find there was competent substantial evidence and recommend approval of the proposed policy amendments. The motion passed by roll call with all present members voting yes. The board’s recommendation will go to the City Commission for final action.
Next steps: staff said final adoption of the comprehensive‑plan text changes is expected in March after coordination with the Water Management District and completion of required findings.
