This week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced more than $32 million in combined grant funding for Missouri, Iowa and South Dakota to address PFAS and other emerging contaminants in drinking water, with the largest share — nearly $13.5 million — flowing to Missouri communities.
The money comes through the Emerging Contaminants in Small or Disadvantaged Communities (EC-SDC) grant program, a $1 billion national investment aimed at helping rural and under-resourced water systems test for, plan around and treat per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly known as PFAS.
Missouri will receive $13,488,000, Iowa will receive $9,457,000 and South Dakota will receive $9.4 million. In each state, the funding is available to communities, drinking water systems and private well owners for testing, planning and infrastructure projects targeting PFAS and other contaminants on EPA’s Contaminant Candidate Lists, including manganese, perchlorate and 1,4-dioxane.
EPA officials framed the announcement as part of a broader, lifecycle-based PFAS strategy tied to the administration’s “Making America Healthy Again” initiative.
“EPA is dedicated to helping all Americans access safe drinking water,” said EPA Region 7 Administrator Jim Macy, whose region oversees Missouri and Iowa. “Targeted funding for communities that need assistance the most accelerates practical solutions that protect public health.”
In Region 8, which covers South Dakota, Administrator Cyrus Western emphasized the technology side of the rollout. “EPA is helping water systems choose proven, affordable technologies that work,” Western said. “With this funding, we’re delivering resources where they’re most needed and empowering systems in South Dakota to implement safeguards that protect human health.”
A Growing Pool of Federal Water Money
With the latest allotment, EPA has now made $5 billion in EC-SDC funding available through the program over five years. Another $6.5 billion in low-interest financing is currently available through EPA’s Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) loan program, which can also be tapped to address PFAS.
According to the agency, sustained investment at that scale helps drive down the per-system cost of treatment, generates real-world performance data to guide utility decisions, accelerates innovation in destruction and disposal technologies, and helps mitigate PFAS across the many forms in which it shows up in source water.
PFAS OUT Targets Small and Rural Systems
EPA is also rolling out a new initiative — PFAS OUTreach, or PFAS OUT — designed to work directly with communities and water systems to reduce exposure to perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) in drinking water.
The agency said the program is built around the reality that small, rural and disadvantaged water systems often have fewer resources to deal with emerging contaminants. PFAS OUT is intended to make sure those systems are not left behind, helping every drinking water system dealing with PFOA or PFOS understand the challenge, reduce exposure quickly, and position itself for compliance with enforceable federal drinking water standards.
Rulemaking Continues Alongside the Grants
EPA’s broader approach to PFAS in drinking water also includes two proposed rules out for public comment that uphold the National Primary Drinking Water Standards for PFOA and PFOS while, in the agency’s words, “enhancing practical implementation and correcting the Biden-Harris Administration’s failure to follow the clear requirements of the Safe Drinking Water Act.”
Combined with parallel EPA work to address PFAS before it enters the environment, the agency said the funding and rulemaking package is intended to deliver real, measurable reductions in PFAS exposure for Americans served by both large utilities and small rural systems.
More information on the Emerging Contaminants – Small or Disadvantaged Communities grant program is available at https://www.epa.gov/dwcapacity/emerging-contaminants-ec-small-or-disadvantaged-communities-grant-sdc.
