There’s now an interactive online tool people can go to for information about PFAS in Wisconsin.
PFAS are a group of manmade chemicals that have been linked to health issues.
Data as it relates to PFAS in Wisconsin can now be found in one place on the Wisconsin DNRs website.
It covers sampling for PFAS done in drinking water, surface water, and consumption like in fish.
While right now, the results of PFAS are scattered but they should start to fill in as more cities start testing their water supply.
DNR Field Operations Director in the Bureau of Drinking Water and Groundwater Kyle Burton says all municipal water systems will be sampling for PFAS in the next year.
And while the new DNR drinking water standards for two PFAS chemicals just went into it effect, that’s not the standard that’s being used with this tool.
“The results here on this webpage in this tool though, they refer to PFAS sampling for drinking water as it relates to DHS’s recommended standards, those health-based recommended standards. They’re going to be able to go here and see what the results for their community is based on those health based standards," said Burton.
The Department of Health Services has a recommended threshold of 20 parts per trillion when it comes to PFAS in drinking water.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency does not have required standards at this time- the process to create them could take years.
This summer, The EPA recommended four types of PFAS be at much lower levels than DHS recommends.
DNR Director of the Office of Emerging Contaminants Mimi Johnson says all of the information in the new tool was available before.
But this puts it all in one place.
“It’s a more accessible way to get this information then the folks who have previously gone in and our very familiar with our specific data bases," said Johnson. "This links back to those data bases for those looking for more detailed information, but really the intent of this was to be as user friendly as possible and as accessible as possible.”
