The microplastics story is a particularly clean illustration of something I think about constantly: the act of measurement changes what you’re measuring. Every time a sample is collected, handled, transferred, stored, processed, and analyzed, there are opportunities to introduce error. Some of those errors elevate contaminant counts. Some suppress them. Protocol compliance reduces the risk, it does not eliminate it.
Tag: wqa
Are PFAS really “Forever” Chemicals?
The problem is that policy built on rhetorical shortcuts tends to produce blunt instruments. And when the instruments are blunt and the underlying science is nuanced, the compliance burden falls indiscriminately while actual risk reduction is uneven. That is where we are with PFAS regulation right now, and the water treatment industry, which sits at the intersection of PFAS as a contamination problem and PFAS as a chemistry used in treatment equipment, has more at stake in getting this right than almost any other sector.
EPA’s RealWaterTA Initiative
Technical assistance (TA) under RealWaterTA is a targeted, boots-on-the-ground effort to help water systems thrive. The EPA is refocusing on eight core priorities to ensure long-term reliability in providing safe drinking water and treating wastewater effectively.
Rethinking Forever Chemicals
While the phrase “forever chemicals” captures attention, it does not accurately reflect the chemical diversity or biochemical behavior of PFAS as a class. The phrase succeeded in raising awareness. But the future of PFAS management belongs to science-driven nuance, not oversimplification.
Richard Mest joins WQA
Richard Mest has joined the Water Quality Association as Strategic Affairs Officer. In the newly created role, Mest will serve as a mentor and catalyst for strategic affairs across the association, but most specifically WQA’s business development strategy, government affairs and technical affairs.
2025 Consumer Drinking Water Insights
As we wind down 2025, water treatment industry sales continue to be fueled by consumer concern, the need for convenience, and an unwavering demand for(more…)
