Drinking Water & Water Resources

Philadelphia has high rates of PFAS contamination. PFAS are a category of emerging contaminants commonly used in firefighting foam, Teflon, non-stick surfaces, stain-resistant surfaces, and food packaging. There are more than 9,000 variants of PFAS, and they are known as “forever chemicals” because they do not easily degrade in the environment and are very difficult to extract or destroy. The sources of PFAS contamination include industrial and manufacturing facilities, landfills where PFAS have leached into groundwater, and places where PFAS-based firefighting foam has been used such as airports, military sites, chemical plants, and aboveground petroleum storage facilities. High levels of PFAS in drinking water are much more common in highly industrialized urban areas such as Philadelphia³. A study from the U.S. Geological Survey discovered that more than 70% of Pennsylvania rivers and streams contain PFAS, including the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers⁴. The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) has determined that PFAS exposure is associated with various adverse health effects, including an increased risk of cancer, lowered fertility rates, and developmental issues in infants and young children².

Policies & Solutions

The Delaware river used to be one of the United States’ filthiest, polluted with sewage, trash, oil, and toxic industrial waste before the EPA’s Clean Water Act was passed in 1972⁹. Overall, the Clean Water Act has been remarkably successful. Pollution has been kept out of US rivers, and the number of waters that meet clean water goals nationwide has doubled, resulting in direct benefits for drinking water quality, public health, recreation, and wildlife. The Philadelphia Water Department continues to uphold EPA regulations instituted by the Clean Water Act, and organizations such as Clean Water Action continue to advocate its values. However, the Clean Water Act could be improved to widen its focus, since it only focuses on point source pollution. Stormwater, urban runoff from industrial facilities, and pollution from households may not be accounted for in the same way as traceable contaminants due to the fact that non point source pollution is more difficult to regulate from a policy standpoint.

Additionally, some pollutants such as PFAS are incredibly difficult to extract from the water supply, making reparations a costly, convoluted process. The Philadelphia Water Department has been periodically testing for PFAS since 2019. In 2021 and 2022, they monitored PFAS levels at three drinking water treatment plants across the city: Baxter, Queen Lane, and Belmont. Baxter draws water from the Delaware River, and Queen Lane and Belmont draw water from the Schuylkill River¹⁰. While monitoring is within the capabilities of the Philadelphia Water Department, PFAS contamination is the result of decades of environmental pollution and is a problem that cannot be solved by water utilities alone. The Philadelphia Water Department stresses that PFAS producers and manufacturers must be held accountable for the control of this pollution at its sources and for its cleanup throughout the region¹⁰. There are some existing innovations that assist with PFAS remediation, but they are costly. Technology shown to be effective with PFAS removal and treatment include certain filtration systems, such as reverse osmosis filters, nanofiltration, and high pressure membranes¹¹. Cleanup of PFAS discharging sites is being handled on a national scale through federal funding from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal¹², while highly impacted areas continue to test and monitor. This federal policy also aims to provide funding for lead removal from drinking water. President Biden has announced $500 million for Philadelphia water upgrades and lead service removal¹³.

On a smaller scale, The Philadelphia Water Department focuses on the removal of microplastics from waterways, the management of stormwater runoff, and the recovery of gray water to decrease water waste. One of the most effective ways to reduce microplastics in drinking water is to reduce the amount of macroplastics in waterways. Macroplastics include bottles, bags, tires, and packaging that litter rivers and streams and break down into microplastic particles¹⁴. The Philadelphia Water Department operates skimming vessels – boats that “skim” floating litter from the surface of the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. On average, each small skimming vessel collects approximately 1.1 tons of plastic per year¹⁴. The Philadelphia Water Department also regularly performs maintenance of the city’s sewer system, where microplastics will often enter through stormwater drains. An estimated 1,000 tons of plastics are removed each year through sewer maintenance and other operations¹⁴. To tackle sewer management, the Philadelphia Water Department has created a 25 year plan to reduce the volume of stormwater entering combined sewers using green infrastructure, and to expand stormwater treatment capacity through infrastructure improvements⁶. Through green stormwater infrastructure, stormwater is soaked up by plants and soil. Increasing vegetation within the city’s infrastructure increases the amount of absorbent surfaces present to soak up stormwater runoff, which in turn decreases risks of flooding and makes for cleaner waterways. Through combined policy implementation and infrastructural redesign, strides have been made in the city of Philadelphia to ensure clean waterways and safe sources of drinking water. While contaminants are still present, efforts are being implemented on both a state and federal scale to improve the safety of Philadelphia’s drinking water. The improvements implemented by city departments, non-governmental organizations, and by federal agencies honor the values of sustainability by recognizing clean water as a social justice issue and human right.

Clean Water Assets

– Philadelphia Water Department, 1101 Market St, Philadelphia, PA 19107

– Clean Water Action, 1315 Walnut St, Philadelphia, PA 19107