Too many "forever chemicals" are in Temple Terrace's water supply, so the city is trying to figure out a plan.
A report shows nearly five times the recommended level of PFAS in city water. And the city could spend more than $70 million to reequip its water treatment system.
In the meantime, City Manager Carlos Baia told city council members last week he's reaching out to Hillsborough County and Tampa to consider hooking up to their systems.
"We have gotten a verbal no from the city of Tampa staff. We don't have it yet in writing," he said. "The county's looking at their provider of water, Tampa Bay Water, to get confirmation that they could, in fact, act as a reseller and actually increase their allocation of water and then resell the water to the city."
PFAS can be removed from drinking water through activated carbon filters or permeable membranes. But Baia says even a temporary filtration system may cost $3 million.
City officials will look at their options during a workshop in August.
ALSO READ: Six times the recommended limit of PFAS were found in USF Tampa's drinking water
The large group of human-made chemicals, known as PFAS, is plaguing 6,700 water systems across the country, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
In April 2024, the EPA set a maximum contaminant level of 4 parts per trillion for two PFAS compounds called PFOA and PFOS. Temple Terrace recently recorded at most 10 for PFOA and 19.5 for PFOS.
The science is still unclear about the health effects, Marie Bourgeois, an associate professor at the University of South Florida College of Public Health, told WUSF last year.
"We don't have a firm handle on exactly how many there are. There are estimates that range from 12,000 to 15,000 compounds," she said, "so it's a challenge to talk about toxicity for any one chemical because you're talking about a very large group.
Some studies show exposure to PFAS can alter immune and thyroid function, according to an article in the National Library of Medicine. The chemicals are also linked to a slew of other illnesses, including cancer.
ALSO READ: Temple Terrace residents share concerns over harmful 'forever chemicals' in the drinking water
Temple Terrace is part of a multijurisdictional lawsuit claiming the manufacturers of these chemicals, 3M and DuPont, contaminated water systems.
“The chemical companies continued to sell those chemicals even after it was determined that there could be possible health effects from those chemicals being in the environment,” Baia said.
The companies settled, and utilities across the country are trying to get their cut to help finance the costly filtration that will be needed moving forward.
Tampa Bay Water, a wholesaler for the greater Tampa Bay region, is receiving $21.7 million or more from the settlement.
