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Council rejects proposed PFOS mitigation financing; funding questions remain
Summary
Council debated a redesign and funding plan for PFOS mitigation at the municipal water plant; the motion to adopt Ordinance 238 failed on a 2-4 vote after members cited cost and debt concerns.
Marietta City Council debated Ordinance 238, a proposed redesign and funding plan to reduce PFOS concentrations in the municipal water supply, and rejected the ordinance after a brief floor discussion.
A sponsor described the engineering change: an interim redesign would increase filtration in order to meet a revised EPA screening threshold (cited as 4 parts per trillion); the sponsor estimated the redesign work at roughly $1.2 million for an interim step and suggested a full build‑out could total about $6 million. The sponsor said available funding pipelines exist but are not yet accessible and that delaying the redesign could require a larger future effort.
Council discussion noted the project's scope and funding implications. One councilor said the full changeout could be substantially more expensive and expressed concern about adding to city debt; another councilor said the need for improved filtration had evolved because EPA guidance now requires a lower parts‑per‑trillion standard.
A motion to adopt the ordinance was moved and seconded; the clerk recorded the result: the motion failed with two votes in favor and four opposed. The transcript did not record the names of all individual aye/nay voters in the published excerpt.
Next steps: Council did not adopt Ordinance 238 at the meeting; members signaled they will revisit water‑treatment design and funding when additional information about grants and financing becomes available.
