The following is the opinion and analysis of the writer:
Tucson’s water is safe and there is a supply of water, thanks to the efforts of the mayor and council, Tucson Water as well our community conserving water. “Beat the Peak” still resonates.
In 2021, the city of Tucson received another acknowledgment for its efforts to conserve water, something that has been done multiple times during my time as your Tucson Ward 5 council member.
In 2006, the Tucson mayor and council took proactive action and approved a Drought Preparedness and Response Plan. This plan is to be updated every five years, and as your Ward 5 council member, I worked on the updates to the plan in 2012, 2017 and 2020.
During my time on the council, this council took action dealing with 1.4-dioxane, finding the money to get Tucson’s Advanced Oxidation Process (AOP) plant built and operating.
The mayor and council and the public had updates from Tucson Water on its efforts to blend the water to reduce the levels of 1.4-dioxane.
When the PFAS/PFOS issue arose, I brought forward an agenda item, on Sept. 5, 2018 for Tucson Water to update the mayor and council and to deal with citizen questions about potential soil and vapor contamination by PFAS/PFOS.
I made the motion to have Tucson Water conduct soil and vapor testing at several sites, working with neighborhoods and organizations, which showed then no contamination.
The mayor and council directed Tucson Water to add the operations to the AOP Plant to get rid of PFAS/PFOS. We did this before we received any funding from the military or the federal government.
To answer the question about Tucson’s water, especially in my ward and the south side: It is safe, and we get our water from the CAP facility in Avra Valley.
Tucson Water’s policy on PFAS/PFOS was 18 ppt (parts per trillion), which is under the current Environmental Protection Agency’s federal standard of 72 ppt.
Then council member Romero joined me in working with the Pima County Health Department, held health and resource fairs and town halls to discuss PFAS/PFOS with residents.
I have held meetings with constituents, neighborhoods and environmental groups about PFAS/PFOS as well.
Thanks to the mayor and council, city staff, the Water Department and the good citizens of the city of Tucson, we use less water and we have a safe and abundant supply to deal with the temporary shutdown of the AOP plant.
Tucson’s mayor and council asked our national elected officials to take action on PFAS/PFOS. The city is suing 3M, which created fire retardant and other products that have PFAS/PFOS.
I have lost many friends and co-workers to health concerns that arose from water. When the Thomas Price Center reported leaks in its gas storage tanks, I was outside Thomas Price, protesting as a leader of the League of United Latin American Citizens.
Our community and our council took action. We have work still to do and your Ward 5 council member, and this council, will work and take the action needed to keep our water safe and abundant.
