EPA Releases New Lithium, PFAS Data

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released the first sets of data collected under the fifth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 5), part of the agency’s PFAS Strategic Roadmap that will provide new data to improve EPA’s understanding of the frequency that 29 PFAS and lithium are found in the nation’s drinking water systems, and at what levels. The monitoring data on PFAS and lithium will help the Agency make determinations about future actions to protect public health under the Safe Drinking Water Act.
 
The data collected under UCMR 5 will ensure science-based decision-making and help EPA better understand national-level exposure to these 29 PFAS and lithium, and whether they disproportionately impact communities with environmental justice concerns. This initial data release represents approximately 7% of the total results that EPA expects to receive over the next three years. The Agency will update the results quarterly and share them with the public in EPA’s National Contaminant Occurrence Database (NCOD) until completion of data reporting in 2026. EPA continues to conduct research and monitor advances in techniques that may improve our ability to measure these and other contaminants at even lower levels.

For more information, visit the EPA Ground Water and Drinking Water program site.