The state of New Hampshire says it will not require that public water supplies be tested for toxic PFAS chemicals by the end of the year, contrary to earlier advice.
The state’s strict new PFAS standards will be suspended Dec. 31 under a court injunction, after industry and municipal groups challenged the rules earlier this fall.
The state Department of Environmental Services is appealing the injunction and the case will likely go to the New Hampshire Supreme Court.
But for now, it says the judge in the case has advised that public water systems do not have to submit PFAS test results for the final quarter of this year. That’s the first period where the new rules would have been in effect.
DES says more than 400 public water systems have already submitted PFAS test results. More are still filing their samples voluntarily. About 1,000 water systems have not filed test results yet.
The state says it’s in touch with systems that showed high PFAS levels about voluntary next steps.
