About the Course
Introduction
This CLE webinar will provide environmental counsel with a practical update on the EPA's April 2024 final PFAS drinking water standards under the Safe Drinking Water Act, including the new enforceable maximum contaminant levels (MCLs). The faculty will discuss how state-led regulation creates variability on which PFAS are covered and how limits are expressed (e.g., individual MCLs, "sum of PFAS" frameworks, or other guidances).
Description
MCLs matter beyond drinking water utilities. Publicly owned treatment works (POTWs) and drinking water systems may work backward from drinking water requirements to set pretreatment expectations and upstream discharge limits. Permitters may incorporate PFAS monitoring and controls where necessary to support downstream compliance. For industrial dischargers that can mean new sampling obligations, revised operational controls, and new attention to less obvious PFAS sources such as ingredients, packaging, legacy equipment, or site conditions.
Counsel must now advise clients under a shifting regulatory framework. EPA has announced plans to keep the PFOA/PFOS national standards while reconsidering other parts of the 2024 drinking water rule and extending certain compliance timelines. Litigation and rulemaking activity continue, affecting how companies strategize and plan for PFAS compliance.
Listen as our expert panel discusses the current state of PFAS regulation in drinking water, how the federal and state regimes interact, and practical approaches for companies assessing PFAS-related operational, permitting, and liability risk.
Presented By
Mr. Gardella’s practice focuses on environmental litigation and compliance matters, as well as the litigation of products liability and toxic torts cases (asbestos, talc, lead paint, benzene) matters. His environmental work includes representation of companies in CERCLA, Safe Drinking Water Act, Clean Water Act, and numerous state level environmental regulatory matters. These matters range from litigation to compliance planning and audits to ensure corporate compliance objectives are met. In addition, for the past five years, Mr. Gardella has focused his practice on the emerging issue of PFAS, and is regularly invited to speak about PFAS at conferences, to consulting and risk analyst groups, and in-house to insurance companies and businesses. His thought leadership and predictive analytical skills with respect to PFAS risks and litigation trends earned him and his PFAS team at CMBG3 the honor of being the only law firm in the country that was recognized as a thought leader on PFAS in 2020 by the National Law Review.
Ms. Hackman focuses on complex litigation involving emerging substances such as PFAS compounds and glyphosate, as part of her comprehensive environmental, toxic tort and exposure litigation practice. Before joining Shook, she honed her expertise as assistant district counsel for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, where she played a pivotal role in shaping environmental policies and litigation strategies. Ms. Hackman's tenure as a special assistant attorney general for the State of Kansas also solidified her reputation as a leading environmental counselor, particularly during her service for the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE). Ms. Hackman continues to leverage her extensive experience to guide clients through the complexities of environmental and products liability law, ensuring they are well-represented in all facets of litigation and compliance. Her profound understanding of emerging substances like PFAS is matched by her commitment to her clients. Ms. Hackman actively represents a Fortune 500 company in one of the largest and most complex environmental MDLs pending in the country, as well as a major agrochemical and biotechnology corporation in complex product liability cases all over the United States.
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This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.
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Date + Time
- event
Tuesday, April 7, 2026
- schedule
1:00 p.m. ET/10:00 a.m. PT
I. Introduction
II. The EPA 2024 PFAS drinking water rule: requirements, timeline
III. Intersection of EPA rule with state regulation
IV. Sample state regulations: California, New York, Michigan
V. Downstream/upstream impacts: POTWs, pretreatment, and discharge permits
VI. Compliance and risk management; mitigating liability
VII. Practitioner takeaways
The panel will address these and other relevant topics:
- What are the current PFAS standards in drinking water in California, New York, and other highly regulated states?
- What is the status of the proposed Safe Drinking Water Act?
- How should businesses that intentionally use PFAS compounds evaluate continued use to minimize liability under these regulations?
- How can businesses evaluate the risk of PFAS in their wastewater effluent from ingredient packaging and process equipment, even if they don't intentionally use PFAS compounds as part of their manufacturing process?
Related Courses
State Regulation of PFAS in Drinking Water: Testing, Restrictions, and Liability
Tuesday, April 7, 2026
1:00 p.m. ET/10:00 a.m. PT
