SATELLITE BEACH, Fla. – The Satellite Beach City Council voted Wednesday night to approve a statement of policy allowing for city staff to reach out to the state and federal officials for guidance on safe water standards.
The city manager said that after testing results came back, the city still needs guidance because the results are safe according to the government's Environmental Protection Agency.
"It's our job to do this. It's our job to go out and seek answers and get this ball rolling," said Courtney Barker, city manager. "We are basically asking the city council to make a statement of policy that we need state and federal assistance in addressing this."
Barker said that drinking water in the city does not come from Satellite Beach, emphasizing why the city is also asking for federal government help funding the cleanup.
"Most of the sources are coming from military installations and they can't really clean it up without a funding source, so we really are asking the federal government to really look into this and really start cleaning some of these chemicals up," Barker said.
During the summer, the city conducted water tests at several locations including schools in Brevard County. The results came back safe by EPA standards, despite showing trace amounts of a cancer-causing chemical.
The city isn't sure how long it will take for the state to come up with new water safety standards. It's also unclear how much money the city will request from the federal government when it comes to remediation.