The water served by the City, delivered to your home and business, meets all Federal and State water quality and safety standards. A growing concern for safe water is per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances known as PFAS.  These are a large group of legacy manufactured coating chemicals. The City regularly tests for PFAS in our water wells. Low levels of PFAS have been detected in the City’s lower producing shallow groundwater wells.  The water is blended with the City’s deeper and higher producing wells, resulting in undetectable levels of PFAS in the City’s water system (i.e., water delivered to homes or businesses). If you have any questions about our drinking water, please contact the City’s Utilities Department at 949-644-3011. Our staff would welcome the opportunity to discuss water quality with you.

Empty headThe water served by the City, delivered to your home and business, meets all federal and state water quality and safety standards.   A growing concern for safe water is per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances known as PFAS.  PFAS are a large group of legacy manufactured coating chemicals.  The City regularly tests for PFAS and low levels of PFAS have been detected in the City’s lower producing shallow groundwater wells.  The water is blended with the City’s deeper and higher producing wells, resulting in undetectable levels of PFAS in the City’s water system (i.e. water delivered to homes or businesses.) If you have any questions about our drinking water, please contact the City’s Utilities Department at 949-644-3011. Our staff would welcome the opportunity to discuss water quality with you.

What is PFAS

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a large group of man-made chemicals used since the 1940s in common household and commercial products. PFAS chemicals were often used to keep food from sticking to cookware and was added in making fabrics in clothes, carpets, and furniture resistant to water and stains. Firefighting foams used to extinguish fuel and oil fires have also historically contained PFAS. Chemical manufacturers are the original source of PFAS chemicals. 

Two legacy long-chain PFAS, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), are no longer produced in the United States. Between 2000 and 2002, PFOS was voluntarily phased out of production in the U.S. by its primary manufacturer. In 2006, eight major companies voluntarily agreed to phase out their global production of PFOA and PFOA-related chemicals, although there are a limited number of ongoing uses. Scientists have found PFOA and PFOS in the blood of nearly all the people they tested in national monitoring surveys. Newer short-chain PFAS compounds, such as perfluorobutane sulfonic acid (PFBS) have been introduced by the industry as replacements for PFOA and PFOS. 

PFAS Frequently Asked Questions (OCWD)

CA State Water Resources Control Board Division of Drinking Water

Environmental Protection Agency PFAS Info

PFAS Regulations

The City’s distributed drinking water complies with State and Federal regulations levels for PFOA, PFOS, PFBS, and PFHxS.

Federal

In April of 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the lead federal agency responsible for protecting America’s drinking water, established Maximum Contaminant Level Goal’s (MCLG), and Maximum Contaminant Level’s (MCL) for five compounds: PFOA, PFOS, PFNA, PFHxS, and HFPO-DA. Public water systems have 5-years (2029) to implement solutions that reduce these PFAS if monitoring shows that drinking levels exceed these MCL’s. 

Maximum Contaminant Level Goal (MCLG): The level of a contaminant in drinking water below which there is on known or expected risk to health. MCLG’s allow for a margin of safety and are non-enforceable public health goals.

Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL): The highest level of a contaminant that is allowed in drinking water. MCL’s are set as close to MCLG’s as feasible using the best available treatment technology and taking cost into consideration. MCL’s are enforceable standards.

ppt: parts per trillion. Equivalent to 1 drop of water in 20 Olympic sized swimming pools.

State

PFAS levels are established by the State Water Resources Control Board’s Division of Drinking Water (DDW). Now that the EPA has established MCLG’s and MCL’s for PFAS compounds, DDW will assess their findings and establish new MCLG’s and MCL’s for state water purveyor’s. Usually, these State levels are at or below the EPA levels. Until the DDW’s MCL’s are set, the City is required to continue to operate under the State’s emergency declaration Action Levels listed in the table below. 

Newport Beach’s PFAS Water Quality

PFAS has been detected in the Orange County Groundwater Basin.  Among the PFAS compounds, low levels of PFOS and PFHxS have been detected in two of the City’s four groundwater wells. These wells are the lower producing shallow aquifer wells identified as Dolphin Shallow (DOLS), and Tamura Shallow (TAMS). The City’s other two wells, Dolphin Deep (DOLD) and Tamura Deep (TAMD) are higher producing deep aquifer wells, and have no PFAS detections.

All four of the City’s groundwater wells are located in Fountain Valley.  As the wells pump water from the different aquifer levels, that water is transmitted 7-miles to the City’s 16^th Street Reservoir in one large 36-inch pipeline. During transmission, water from the higher producing wells, blends with water from the lower producing wells. This blending process effectively lowers PFAS compounds from the shallow wells, resulting in undetectable levels of PFAS in the City’s water system.  (PFAS tests are conducted at the City’s 16^th Street reservoir, the source point for all groundwater entering the City’s water system.)  The City worked with the California Division of Drinking Water (DDW) to document and create a blending plan, which has been a long standing practice of the City. The blending plan, a treatment method, ensures that the water distributed to residents and businesses meets State and Federal PFAS safety guidelines. This formal plan was approved by DDW and found at this link.City of Newport Beach Well Blending Plan.

DDW has instituted a monitoring order for all four of the City’s groundwater wells. This monitoring order requires the City’s groundwater wells to be tested on a quarterly basis for PFAS chemicals. The table linked below details PFAS testing results on the City’s four groundwater wells and the 16th Street Reservoir. The testing result of the 16^th Street Reservoir is the result of the water after the blending process and prior to entering the City’s water distribution system. Testing results will be updated on a quarterly basis as they are provided to the City. City of Newport Beach Quarterly PFAS Testing Results.