S724 - Water Safety Act Summary

• Authorizes the Governor to require a facility to cease operations if it has an NPDES permit, received multiple violations within two years, and has unauthorized PFAS discharges that violate federal drinking water standards (expires December 31, 2020).

• Requires responsible parties to establish permanent replacement water supplies (via public water connection or whole-house filtration system) for households with private wells contaminated by PFAS, including GenX; appropriates $2,000,000 to local governments for planning and waterline extensions with reimbursement from responsible parties.

• Appropriates $450,000 to Cape Fear Public Utility Authority to conduct baseline water quality sampling and test ion exchange and activated carbon treatment technologies for removing PFAS and other contaminants.

• Appropriates $8,000,000 to UNC Board of Governors for the North Carolina Policy Collaboratory to coordinate testing of all public water supply intakes and wells for emerging contaminants (PFAS, 1,4-dioxane, etc.) and establish baseline water quality assessments by July 1, 2019.

• Appropriates funds totaling $2,046,575 to the Department of Environmental Quality and $530,839 to the Department of Health and Human Services for water quality sampling, analysis equipment (mass spectrometer), and establishment of a Water Health and Safety Unit to assess PFAS impacts on human health.