City of Madison Celebrates the Recommissioning of Well 15, New PFAS Treatment Facility

Today, Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway and Water Utility General Manager Krishna Kumar celebrate the completion of a PFAS treatment facility at Well 15 on Madison's northeast side and are officially re-opening the well. The well has been shut down since 2019 due to PFAS contamination. With the PFAS filtration system up and running, all measurable PFAS are being removed from the water and Well 15 can now safely be put back into the distribution system.

"Providing safe, clean drinking water is one of the most important services we provide as a city, and the Madison Water Utility takes that seriously," said Mayor Rhodes-Conway. "We were among the first to voluntarily test our water for PFAS, and we are now among the first to bring a drinking water treatment system online in the state. Thanks to the Madison Water Utility, Governor Evers, and the Biden Administration for their help to bring this to fruition."

PFAS, or Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances, are a class of chemicals used in everything from food packaging and cookware to upholstery, clothing and firefighting foam. The chemicals do not break down naturally in the environment and are therefore termed "forever chemicals."

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently finalized regulations for PFAS in drinking water, in which new enforcement standards, or maximum contaminant levels (MCLs), were established for PFAS compounds. All Madison wells have been meeting those standards, with the exception of Well 15. With the treatment system in place today, the Madison Water Utility fully expects to meet those standards. PFAS were first discovered at Well 15 in 2017 and the well was later shut down in 2019 amid community concerns and has not operated since.

Planning and design for a treatment system took place over five years, and was informed by community input. The City ultimately opted for a hybrid PFAS treatment system that utilizes granular activated carbon (GAC) and ion exchange (IX) resin. GAC removes PFAS (and other volatile organics) while IX reduces concentrations of short-chain PFAS.

As expected, following PFAS filtration equipment installation, water quality testing results show that this treatment is indeed able to remove all measurable PFAS compounds, that we are required to test, to below detectable levels.

With a total project cost of $5.9M, the project is funded through Wisconsin's Safe Drinking Water Loan Program, which is made possible through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Half of the funding is in the form of principal forgiveness (grants); the remaining half will eventually be paid for by funds from PFAS settlements. This project does not ultimately use any water rate revenues.

"The PFAS treatment at Municipal Well 15 highlights Madison's commitment to providing safe, high-quality water for our community," says Madison Water Utility General Manager Krishna Kumar.

Special thanks to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and the Safe Drinking Water Loan Program, as well as the construction contractor, Daniels Construction, and our design engineering consultants, AECOM.

Please visit the Well 15 Project Website for more information and sign up to receive email updates and alerts . Check out the latest Annual Drinking Water Quality Report.