DBS&A Supports NMED Emerging Contaminants Program

To investigate the quality of water in New Mexico public water systems, the New Mexico Environment Department’s Emerging Contaminants Program (NMED ECP) has received funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The Emerging Contaminants in Small or Disadvantaged Communities Grant is funding the NMED’s ECP in a two-year study, which will include sampling public water systems statewide. The ECP is particularly focused about the presence of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in public drinking water.

Products containing PFAS have been widely used for decades for firefighting, non-stick cookware, stain-resistant materials, food packaging, shampoos, and other uses. Often called “forever chemicals” because they break down slowly, if at all, PFAS can seep into soil, surface water, and groundwater. Studies have shown that exposure to PFAS raises risks for cancer, liver damage, human development problems, and other long-term or fatal conditions.

DBS&A has been contracted to collect drinking water samples at up to 650 public water systems. Depending on the type of system, samples are to be collected on a quarterly or semi-annual basis over a one-year period.

To manage the resulting water quality data, DBS&A customized GLA-Data, our existing, web-accessible database management system (DBMS). This online application was developed by DBS&A to store, visualize, map, manage, and report environmental data. Integration of drinking water sampling data into the DBMS will enable the ECP to readily map, access, and interact with data through custom queries and analysis tools providing visual and graphic outputs. In addition, New Mexico public water systems, consultants, and other stakeholders can view and download sampling results, and find other contextual information from local, state, and federal spatial datasets.

Read more on the NMED’s website.