Muscle Shoals water report shows PFAS detections as utility begins state-funded treatment study
Muscle Shoals water customers are entering a new phase of PFAS treatment planning. A July 28, 2026, notice from the Alabama Department of Environmental Management says $370,000 in Drinking Water State Revolving Fund assistance has been made available to the Muscle Shoals Utilities Board for a proposed pilot study comparing treatment alternatives.
The notice follows the utility’s 2026 Water Quality Report, which covers testing conducted during 2025 and lists detections of several per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly called PFAS.
What the utility reported
The Muscle Shoals Utilities Board’s water treatment plant uses Wilson Lake on the Tennessee River as its drinking-water source. In the report’s 2025 PFAS table, the utility lists PFOS at 17.0 parts per trillion and PFOA at 9.8 parts per trillion. It also lists PFHxA at 3.5 ppt, PFHxS at 2.3 ppt, PFBS at 4.9 ppt and PFHpA at 2.4 ppt.
A separate Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule 5 table lists PFOA at 9.6 ppt and PFOS at 16.0 ppt, along with PFBA at 5.0 ppt, PFHxA at 4.2 ppt and PFBS at 5.1 ppt. Those are separately identified monitoring results in the utility’s report, not additional figures that replace the values in the PFAS table.
The reported concentrations show what the utility detected in its 2025 testing. By themselves, they do not establish that Muscle Shoals has been formally adjudicated in violation or that a final compliance determination has been issued.
Temporary treatment is already in use
The utility says it has installed granular activated carbon, or GAC, in existing filters at its water plant as a temporary and emergency measure to reduce PFAS while permanent and long-term filtration improvements are evaluated, designed and implemented.
The report also says the utility completed an earlier pilot study of PFAS treatment technologies and is working with engineers to select the best method. The temporary GAC installation should not be read as proof that PFAS has been eliminated or that the system is guaranteed to meet every applicable requirement.
What the new $370,000 study will examine
ADEM‘s notice identifies the proposed project as SRF Project No. FS010395-02. It describes a PFAS treatment pilot study intended to compare treatment alternatives, expected performance, capital costs and operating-and-maintenance costs. The stated goal is to help identify a method capable of meeting or exceeding the 4.0-ppt PFOA and PFOS maximum contaminant levels.
The $370,000 is assistance for pilot-study work, not a permanent treatment construction award or the final cost of a buildout. ADEM’s records do not select a permanent technology, establish a construction schedule or determine the total amount ultimately needed.
What the 4.0-ppt standard means here
EPA‘s 2024 final PFAS drinking-water rule established enforceable maximum contaminant levels of 4.0 ppt each for PFOA and PFOS. The Muscle Shoals report’s 2025 results are higher than 4.0 ppt for both substances, but the cited local records do not say that the utility has been formally found in violation.
EPA’s separate 2026 compliance-extension proposal would allow eligible systems to seek additional time to comply while keeping the 4.0-ppt limits in place. That proposal is not a final change to the federal compliance timetable, and the records cited here do not show that Muscle Shoals has received such an extension.
What remains undecided for customers
The records do not yet establish the permanent treatment method, final capital cost, construction schedule, financing beyond the pilot assistance or whether customer rates could change.
The utility says it does not believe PFAS-related capital and operating costs should be borne by ratepayers and says it is pursuing claims against parties it holds responsible for the contamination. That is the utility’s stated position, not a final funding or rate decision.
Public comments are still open
ADEM determined that the proposed project qualifies for a categorical exclusion from further environmental study under the state’s environmental review process. That determination is not the same as a final construction approval.
ADEM’s notice, dated July 28, 2026, says written comments must be submitted within 30 days of the public notice. Based on that notice date, the stated comment period runs through August 27, 2026. ADEM says it will evaluate opposing comments before taking formal action to proceed with the project.
For Muscle Shoals customers, the practical takeaway is that the utility has published 2025 PFAS test results, temporary GAC treatment is operating, and state-supported pilot work is being proposed to help determine a long-term solution. The permanent technology, project cost, schedule and customer impact have not been decided in the cited records.
Sources
- ADEM categorical exclusion and DWSRF notice for Muscle Shoals Utilities Board
- Muscle Shoals Utilities Board 2026 Water Quality Report
- EPA proposed PFOA and PFOS Compliance Extension Rule
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