WesTech Engineering November 3, 2020 A wave of recent retirees has left experienced water and wastewater treatment plant (WTP and WWTP) operators in short supply and high demand. Given 2019 data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and a recent Time magazine analysis of occupation-based retirement ages, this shortage is set to become even more pronounced.  The Time magazine analysis indicates that only 0.91 percent of WTP and WWTP operators – whom the EPA terms water protection specialists – work beyond 66 years of age, while the BLS data shows that over a third of current operations professionals are at, or nearing, retirement age (see the following chart).

A group of chemicals known as PFAS – perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances – has been generating a lot of attention. With PFAS in drinking water, public health may be at risk of adverse health effects such as high cholesterol, low birth weight infants, immune-system problems, cancer, and thyroid disease. Media attention about the topic has grown, and municipal water plants are facing pressure to evaluate PFAS treatment and how to best approach this emerging contaminant in their own water sources. The Extent of the Problem Concern over the evidence of PFAS in drinking water has received worldwide attention. An international group of authors created the 2018 Zurich Statement on Future Actions on Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances to encourage collaboration between researchers, regulators, and PFAS users around the globe. The 2019 Stockholm Convention on persistent organic pollutants required countries to take action to eliminate the production and use of the chemical. In a recent Harvard study, elevated levels of PFAS chemicals were found in 194 out of 4,864 water supplies in 33 states. Nearly 17 million U.S. residents had perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in their water at or above the EPA suggested advisory limit. With this awareness, communities began testing and seeking PFAS treatment options. In 2016, the EPA established a health advisory level of 70 parts per trillion combined for the main drinking water PFAS chemicals, PFOS (perfluorooctane sulfonate) and PFOA (perfluorooctanoic acid). With drinking water PFAS measured in the parts per trillion, that is like detecting a grain of sand in an Olympic-sized swimming pool. 

Wastewater treatment is a process that uses physical, chemical, or biological methods to remove contaminants from wastewater. Water treatment is necessary because water can be a carrier of disease and can become contaminated by sewage, agricultural runoff, industrial discharge, and leaching from landfills. Wastewater treatment is necessary because it reduces the volume of waste that must be disposed of, it reduces the pollution of surface water bodies, and it protects public health.

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