The Wausau City Council will meet Monday evening to approve spending for bottled water and in-home filters for residents concerned about PFAS in the city's drinking water supply.
PFAS chemicals are man-made compounds found in cooking ware and firefighting foam that are linked to negative health outcomes.
The Wausau City Council plans to use money from the American Recovery Act for the purchases.
Mayor Katie Rosenberg says that means the council will need to make sure they follow a rigid process to secure the funds.
“We have to make sure that we’re following the federal procurement guidelines,” she says. “We have a couple of housekeeping things to vote on, just to make sure that we’re following the right process.” Rosenberg says residents in need of bottled water should contact The Neighbor’s Place, which has been storing and distributing packages of water since it already has the logistics and warehouse space to do so.
The city council in La Crosse has also decided to spend $25,000 on bottled water for town of Campbell residents with PFAS-contaminated wells.
The council voted Thursday to pull the money from the city's contingency fund. The move was approved without discussion.
More than 500 private wells in Campbell on French Island are contaminated with PFAS chemicals.
The pollution has been traced to the city's airport, which is located on French Island.
