00:00John Dee doesn't know how long his family has been drinking PFAS contaminated water.
00:09We know our drinking water would be considered illegal in America because of the high level
00:14of PFAS forever chemicals.
00:16Water in the Upper Blue Mountains catchment is technically considered safe by Australian
00:20standards but not for long.
00:23New guidelines proposed federally would drastically reduce acceptable levels early next year.
00:31An independent investigation found firefighting foam used on a petrol tanker crash in 1992
00:38likely leached into the catchment.
00:40Now looks that we could have been drinking this water for nearly 32 years and that's
00:45unacceptable.
00:47Six months ago NSW Government and Sydney Water were proudly saying there are no known PFAS
00:56hotspots in the water catchment.
00:58They've since shut two dams and are now investing three and a half million dollars in a mobile
01:03treatment system.
01:04I don't think people should be unnecessarily worried about exposure to forever chemicals
01:09and PFAS but wherever possible we will look to strengthen both testing and the kind of
01:16built and fixed infrastructure when it comes to water.
01:19This is an emerging global problem meaning treatments are still in their infancy but
01:24Sydney Water says the technology being installed here is considered the most effective and
01:29will significantly improve the quality of drinking water.
01:33This is one of the first case studies when it's entered a major water supply in Australia
01:38and this is going to be really important to see how quick, affordable and effective the
01:44treatment is going to be.
01:47It'll be switched on by the end of the year.
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