Marshfield Utilities. Image courtesy: WAOW TV
MARSHFIELD, WI (WSAU-WAOW) – After having to close several of their wells due to PFAS contamination in 2022, the city of Marshfield is opening up a new one to bring relief to their water customers.
Marshfield Utilities Executive Director Nicolas Kumm said, “The new facility has media inside of it, basically a filter media. So as the water goes through the media, it removes the PFAS compounds, and makes it PFAS-free.”
But keeping PFAS out of the water comes at a price. He said that funding for the facility came from both federal, and local funds. Kumm said, “We actually were able to receive a 70% principal forgiveness, basically a grant from the state through the safe drinking water loan, which is actually a biproduct of the bipartisan infrastructure bill that went through a few years from the federal government, and so 70% of it is being sourced through that, and the rest of it is something that will be passed through to our customers through rates in future years.”
The city’s wells were restored to full capacity, and Kumm said that it’s a relief to have everything up and running again.
He said, “It puts our system back to normal. It gets us in a spot where we can react and make sure that we can serve our customers just on a normal day, or if there was a large fire or some other events that needed a lot of water, it just gives us peace of mind.”
He added that now that the facility is up and running, that residents should no longer be concerned about PFAS in their water. Kumm said he expects a more permanent facility to be open in about five years.
Comments