As water quality issues continue to arise throughout the state, next week the 12-member Drinking Water Quality Council is slated to hold its first meeting to consider setting maximum contaminant levels for chemicals in New York water.

A state public health official contends the rulemaking is needed because of “gaps” in the system of federal water-quality regulation. Gov. Andrew Cuomo has asked that the council consider setting the maximum contaminant levels for perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), a man-made chemical used to coat nonstick cookware and stain-resistant fabrics that residents of a small village in Rensselaer County claim has caused adverse health effects and declining property values, as well as perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) and 1,4-Dioxane, during the meeting at Stony Brook University on Monday. In a statement Sept. 22, the Cuomo administration said that PFOA, PFOS and dioxane are “priority emerging contaminants” that are not regulated by the federal government.

The council is charged with advising the Department of Health commissioner on what unregulated contaminants should be tested at public water systems throughout the state, said Brad Hutton, the deputy commissioner of public health for the state's Department of Health in an interview Tuesday afternoon.