Join us for another seminar in our Water Research Series, featuring experts examining emerging challenges shaping water, wastewater, public health, and infrastructure.

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Description: Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a large group of synthetic chemicals widely used in industrial processes and consumer products because of their resistance to heat, water, oil, and grease. Due to their persistence, mobility, and potential health impacts, PFAS contamination has become a major concern for drinking water systems across the United States, particularly for small and rural communities with limited technical and financial resources.

This seminar will provide a practical and operator-focused overview of PFAS management for rural water treatment systems, emphasizing real-world operational decision-making, regulatory awareness, sampling practices, and treatment selection. Common PFAS sources affecting rural systems, including firefighting foam applications, landfills, wastewater treatment plant effluent, biosolids land application, septic systems, stormwater runoff, and contaminated groundwater, are discussed along with key aspects of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s 2024 National Primary Drinking Water Regulation for PFAS, including monitoring requirements, reporting obligations, and maximum contaminant levels (MCLs). Special emphasis is placed on proper PFAS sampling protocols, contamination prevention during field collection, and interpretation of laboratory reports because PFAS analysis can be significantly affected by improper sampling materials or handling practices. Practical treatment technologies, including granular activated carbon (GAC), ion exchange resin (IX), reverse osmosis (RO), and nanofiltration (NF), are compared based on removal performance, operational requirements, monitoring needs, source water chemistry, pretreatment demands, membrane fouling, breakthrough behavior, and waste management considerations. This presentation will also highlight that most PFAS treatment technologies separate or concentrate PFAS rather than completely destroy them, creating additional management challenges related to spent media and concentrated waste streams.

Presenter: Md. Nashir Uddin, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Morgan State University

Certificate: This training has NOT been submitted for approval of continuing education credit. We will provide a certificate of attendance to eligible attendees, but cannot guarantee it will meet your PDH or CEU requirements.

Who Should Attend: