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Danbury water staff warn PFAS compliance could cost roughly $52 million
Summary
City water staff told the budget committee that treating public water to newly set PFAS maximum contaminant levels could require capital and operating work with an estimated price tag of about $52 million; staff also flagged rising Veolia operations costs and doubled electricity and chemical bills tied to new treatment trains.
David (speaker 12), a lead water/wastewater official at the meeting, told the Ad Hoc Public Works Budget Committee that treating for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) to the federal maximum contaminant levels announced in April could cost the city on the order of $52 million with current technology and regulatory levels.
"If we had to treat for it, right now, we could be another $52,000,000," David said, explaining the estimate ties to the recently set MCLs that put PFOA and PFOS at 4 parts per trillion and that equipment and monitoring at those levels are technically demanding.
Committee members asked whether any settlement or class-action recovery would offset those costs. David said the city has joined nationwide litigation but that distribution of any recovery is still undetermined; he said answers from the city’s attorneys remain pending.
The water discussion also covered near-term operating pressures. Staff said a new set of treatment trains and four added facilities have come on line and are increasing operating costs: Veolia’s operations contract, higher chemical use and rising electric bills have pushed up outside-services and utility expenditures. Staff told the committee electrical costs had roughly doubled for the new systems in some months and that chemical costs have increased materially.
On hydrants and distribution, staff said most hydrants in Danbury are city-owned and that regular hydrant flushing is being carried out to protect water quality even amid drought conditions. The replacement cost for a hydrant was estimated in the meeting at roughly $4,000–$5,000 depending on installation specifics; staff said a small percentage of hydrants are out of service and the department continuously reviews replacements.
What the committee asked to follow up: timing and magnitude of any class-action settlement proceeds, more detailed cost breakdowns for PFAS treatment options, and comparative operations-and-maintenance benchmarking for the Veolia contract.
Next steps: Staff said they will continue to refine cost estimates, provide requested comparisons and return follow-ups to the committee; any capital plan to address PFAS would require further council approvals and likely outside funding sources.
Attribution note: Quotes and numbers in this article are attributable to David (speaker 12) and other city staff who presented to the committee; where the transcript used inconsistent spellings for a staff name (Rob Barone/Rob Verone) this article records the two forms and identifies that as a transcription inconsistency.
