#pfaspollution — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #pfaspollution, aggregated by home.social.
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More about #Maine's #PFASBan from July 2025.
Excerpt:
"The Department of Environmental Protection is also recommending the board reject exemptions for #KitchenAppliances, #coffeemakers, electric fragrance warmers, and components in #CleaningProducts and furniture."Maine passed an amended law to ban #PFAS, short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, in 2024. Starting next year, it will be illegal to sell a range of products from #SkiWax to #cosmetics, that include intentionally added PFAS.
PFAS are known as 'forever chemicals' because they do not easily break down in the natural environment or living tissue. The products have been linked to serious health problems in humans, including cancer, kidney disease and low birth weight."
Archived version:
https://archive.ph/adI0c#selection-1435.4-1463.13#MainePol #PFASBan #PFASPollution
#SaferChemicals #PFOS #Pollution #ForeverChemicals -
#CommunityVoicesForChange on #WMPG!
Topics include:
#PFASPollution in Maine
#TransgenderYouth
#FoodInsecurity
#AISurveillance
#VotersRights
#NuclearWeapons
And much, much more!Stream on demand:
https://www.wmpg.org/wmpg-podcasts/community-voices-for-change/ -
"Advocates began sounding the alarm over PFAS in pesticides in 2023. The #Biden EPA attempted to discredit the author of one study that identified PFAS in pesticides, and the agency appeared to have lied about whether some of the chemicals are in pesticides. Under Donald #Trump, the EPA has increased the number of PFAS proposed for use in pesticides."
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/nov/18/california-pfas-forever-chemicals
#USPol #EPAFail #ForeverChemicals #DowChemicalKnew
#3MKnew #BigAg #RoundupReady #Glyphosate #Bees #Extinction #Hubris #WaterIsLife #PFASContamination #EnvironmentalDamage #EPACuts #Pollution #PFOS #PFASPollution #PFASContamnation #ManMadeDisasters #3M #3MLied #GenXChemicals
#PFNA #PFHxS -
HT @ai6yr
#California farms applied millions of pounds of #PFAS to key crops, study finds‘#ForeverChemicals’ sprayed on #almonds, #grapes, #tomatoes and other crops as activists warn of ‘obvious problem’
by Tom Perkins
Tue 18 Nov 2025 07.00 ESTExcerpt: "California farms applied an average of 2.5m lbs of PFAS “forever chemicals” per year on cropland from 2018 to 2023, or a total of about 15m lbs, a new review of state records shows.
The chemicals are added to pesticides that are sprayed on crops such as almonds, pistachios, #wine grapes, #alfalfa and tomatoes, the review of California Department of Pesticide Regulation data found. The Environmental Working Group nonprofit put together the report.
The risk for uptake of PFAS is likely higher in water-rich fruits and vegetables, because water attracts the chemicals, and research has shown PFAS may concentrate at dangerous levels in some produce. The chemicals also pollute water supplies and present a higher risk to the often low income and Latino #farmworkers."
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/nov/18/california-pfas-forever-chemicals#ForeverChemicals #DowChemicalKnew
#3MKnew #BigAg #RoundupReady #Glyphosate #Bees #Extinction #Hubris #WaterIsLife #PFASContamination #EnvironmentalDamage #EPACuts #Pollution #PFOS #PFASPollution #PFASContamnation #ManMadeDisasters #3M #3MLied #GenXChemicals
#PFNA #PFHxS -
#MaineCDC recommends limiting fish consumption from 4 new bodies of water due to #PFAS contamination
Maine Public | By Nora Saks
Published June 30, 2025 at 5:27 PM EDT"The Maine Center for Disease Control is recommending that people limit consuming fish from four new bodies of water due to #PFASContamination.
"The new advisories apply to game fish caught in #LovejoyPond in #AlbionME, the #SebasticookRiver in #BurnhamME and #BentonCollyerBrook in #GrayME, and #AndroscogginLake in #LeedsME and #WayneME.
"The Maine CDC issued the new guidelines after elevated levels of PFAS, the group of man-made #ForeverChemicals, were detected in fish tissue sampled by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection last year.
"In the recommendations updated last week, the Maine CDC also expanded its advisories on #AnnabessacookLake in #MonmouthME and #WinthropME, and #MessalonskeeStream in #OaklandME and #WatervilleME.
"These additions bring the total number of rivers, lakes and streams that have game fish contaminated with unsafe levels of PFAS to 25.
"For more details on the consumption limits on numbers and species of freshwater fish in each waterbody, check out the Maine CDC website."
Maine CDC website:
https://www.maine.gov/dhhs/mecdc/environmental-health/eohp/fish/#EPACuts #WaterIsLife #Maine #Pollution #PFAS #PFOS #ForeverChemicals #EnvironmentalDamage #Wildlife #PFASPollution #PFASContamnation #ManMadeDisasters #3M #3MLied #Scotchgard #Scotchban #BASF #Teflon #GenXChemicals #PFNA #PFHxS #Lubricants #Cosmetics #PFB #FireFightingFoam #DowChemical
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Meanwhile across the pond...
'Forever chemicals' used on Jersey's potato crops
Alex Green - BBC News
February 4, 2025"So-called #ForeverChemicals are present in at least four #AgriculturalSprays used in Jersey, including one used on #PotatoCrops, the island's environment minister has said.
"In the States Assembly, Deputy Steve Luce was quizzed on what actions, if any, were being implemented to reduce contamination by sprays containing PFAS in the island's water and environment.
"The minister was also asked to provide a timeline for 'achieving measurable progress' in addressing the issue.
"Luce said his initial discussions with the industry were focused on finding an alternative and stopping the use of such sprays 'as soon as possible'.
Health issues"PFAS, used in #FirefightingFoam, leaked into the area by the airport's fire training ground in the early 1990s.
"The chemicals, branded forever chemicals because they take a long time to break down, are found in a small quantity in most people's blood, and research is ongoing to determine if higher levels can lead to various health problems.
"After the foam was confirmed to be in #DrinkingWater in 1993, the island's government and the #airport, which it owns, stopped the use of the foam and offered to install new bore holes for affected residents.
"People living in the area believe the #ContaminatedWater damaged crops and caused a litany of ongoing serious health issues.
"The PFAS Scientific Advisory Panel, which makes recommendations, was set up by Public Health in May 2023.
"Members met islanders who participated in the blood-testing programme and, in a draft report, recommended therapeutic phlebotomy for those affected.
"Therapeutic phlebotomy is a procedure that involves removing some blood from the body to lower the concentration of PFAS.
"In September 2024, the advisory panel published a report outlining the impact PFAS exposure had on health.
"The panel found exposure to certain PFAS was associated with #ElevatedCholesterol levels, and said there was evidence suggesting a probable increase in kidney and testicular #cancers among those exposed to certain PFAS materials."
#ChannelIslands #JerseyUK #BalliwickOfJersey #PFASPollution #Farming #Potatoes
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The Drinking Water Crisis That North Carolina Ignored
For decades, #DuPont dumped toxic PFAS into North Carolina’s #CapeFearRiver. Today, the local community is suffering the health consequences—and fighting back.
June 7, 2021
[...]
"The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (#NCDEQ) filed a lawsuit against #Chemours in 2017—but only in response to bad press—and last fall, the state attorney general filed another. And yet, North Carolina is currently reviewing its water quality standards, something it does every three years, but not one rule for PFAS pollution is even up for consideration. 'People know they’re being poisoned, but the state isn’t doing much about it,' Bell says.
"So residents have been taking matters into their own hands. In July 2018, #CapeFearRiverWatch, represented by the Southern Environmental Law Center (#SELC), sued the #NCDEQ to force Chemours to immediately stop polluting the Cape Fear River. The following month, the pair also filed a federal lawsuit against Chemours for violating the #CleanWaterAct and #ToxicSubstancesControlAct, but it was dropped later in the year as part of a $13 million #settlement among the NCDEQ, Cape Fear River Watch, and Chemours. The settlement resulted in a consent order that required Chemours to cease its discharges and add #scrubbers to its smokestacks to prevent airborne PFAS pollution. The outcome is a critical step in preventing future PFAS pollution, but NCDEQ has had to fine the company for not complying with the order, and its past contamination, still lingering in the #water, #soil, and peoples’ bodies, remains unaddressed."
Read more:
https://www.nrdc.org/stories/drinking-water-crisis-north-carolina-ignored#PFASPollution #WaterIsLife
#OceansAreLife #PollutionRunoff #WebOfLife #SoilPollution #Cancer #AirPollution -
IN-DEPTH: For clean beauty brands, getting #PFAS out of #makeup might be easier said than done
“Even the most well-intentioned brands could experience PFAS problems.”
Elizabeth Gribkoff
Mar 24, 2022"The [PFAS] compounds can be added to makeup to make products #WaterResistant, longer-lasting, and more spreadable. Until last year, there were no studies looking at how much PFAS were in North American cosmetics, although the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is notoriously hands-off in regulating the safety of personal care products. With that in mind, a team of researchers from the University of Notre Dame, Indiana University, and other institutions tested more than 200 #mascaras, #concealers, #EyeShadows, and other cosmetics from North America.
"What they found surprised the researchers: roughly half the products they tested contained the PFAS indicator organic fluorine. Colored #lipsticks, mascaras, and #foundations advertised as '#LongLasting' or '#WearResistant' had particularly high levels."
Read more:
https://www.ehn.org/pfas-in-makeup-2656887006.html#Cosmetics #Proprietary #FDA #SecretativeCorporations #PFAS #PFOS #WaterIsLife #WaterPollution #PFASPollution #PFOA #PTFE #Wildlife #Cancer #Contamination #Chemicals #Environment #FoodPackaging #Plastics #FireFightingFoam #Firefighters #Health #Mining #Lubricants #Electronics #Cosmetics #PFNA #PFHxS #PFB #GenXChemicals
#Toxic #Capitalism #Crapitalism -
‘#ForeverChemicals’ – the part of cleaning you don’t want to last
"Notable categories of cleaners that either may contain, or have historically contained, PFAS are:
- glass and hard surface cleaners
- fabric, upholstery, and #CarpetCleaners and treatments
- #waxes and polishes for #floors, #furniture, #cars and #boat vessels
- dishwashing rinse aids
- #AerosolPropellant-based #cleaners and #AirFresheners
- #paints and #coatings."Floor sealers and finishes – products that cure into a film once applied – often contain PFAS. During floor stripping and waxing, PFAS concentrations in dust and air particulate matter were one order of magnitude greater than typical residential indoor air and two orders of magnitude greater than outdoor air, according to a 2022 study.
"But now the cleaning products #Industry wants to keep consumers in the dark about the use of these chemicals in their brands. Earlier this month, a bill was introduced in Congress on behalf of leading household cleaning product makers that would deny Americans the right to know about #ToxicChemicals in cleaning products.
"The manufacturer #Reckitt applauded Rep. Larry Bucshon (R-Ind.) for introducing the bill, which would rob consumers of crucial information about the ingredients in their products. Reckitt makes popular household brands like #Lysol, #Woolite, #AirWick, #Vanish, #Calgon, among many others.
And industry giant #SCJohnson
called for a 'clear federal standard' on disclosing ingredients, knowing any such standard could take a decade or longer. The company manufactures #Glade, #Drano, #Pledge, #ScrubbingBubbles, #Shout and #Windex, along with many other products, including #Ziploc."Read more:
https://www.ewg.org/news-insights/news/2023/10/forever-chemicals-part-cleaning-you-dont-want-last#PFAS #PFOS #WaterIsLife #WaterPollution #PFASPollution #PFOA #PTFE #Wildlife #Cancer #Contamination #Chemicals #Environment #FoodPackaging #Plastics #FireFightingFoam #Firefighters #Health #Mining #Lubricants #Electronics #Cosmetics #PFNA #PFHxS #PFB #GenXChemicals
#Toxic #DowChemical #DuPont #3M #BASF #Teflon #RainWater #DrinkingWater -
#FloorWaxing could be an important source of #PFAS #contamination, with increased #occupational health risks for #workers
May 25, 2022
"There’s a special satisfaction that comes from walking on perfectly shined floors — but is it worth the potential risk to floor waxing workers?
"A study published earlier this year measured per- and #polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in #dust and airborne #ParticulateMatter [which means it's going into the air that everyone breathes -- just not humans] during professional floor stripping and waxing. After estimating PFAS emission rates generated from the process, researchers concluded that significantly higher levels of PFAS were present during floor waxing.
"The study was led by Jiaqi Zhou, PhD, a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering at the UNC-Chapel Hill Gillings School of Global Public Health. Collaborators include Karsten Baumann; Naomi Chang; Glenn Morrison; Wanda Bodnar; Zhenfa Zhang; Jason Surratt; and Barbara J. Turpin — all with the Gillings School — and Joanna M. Atkin, with UNC’s Department of Chemistry.
"PFAS are human-produced chemicals commonly used in industry and consumer products. Most PFAS do not break down over time, so they remain in the environment and in the bodies of exposed human and #animals long after initial use. Scientific studies have shown that exposure to PFAS may be linked to harmful health effects, which was the impetus for this study.
"Published in Atmospheric Environment, the paper reports that floor waxing floor waxing workers could have increased occupational health risks due to PFAS exposures.
“Assessment of occupational exposure due to floor maintenance is important because PFAS exposures can lead to increased risk of #cancer, #immunotoxicity and #neurodevelopmental problems, the co-authors write."
#PFASPollution #WaterIsLife #EnvironmentalPollution #CleaningProducts #FloorWax #EnvironmentalPollution
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Study to focus on how #PFAS travels from Maine's rural schools to #ResidentialWells
MDI Bio Lab plans to sample water from homeowners near several #HancockCounty schools."Scientists say #cleaning supplies and #FloorWax commonly used in schools are made with PFAS chemicals that go through septic systems and seep into the #groundwater. Mount Desert Island Regional School System Superintendent Mike Zboray said the district hopes to switch to #PFASfree alternatives."
Author: Vivien Leigh (NEWS CENTER Maine)
Published: 6:15 PM EDT May 23, 2024BAR HARBOR, Maine — Researchers plan to test residential wells near several Hancock County schools to determine if their wastewater is causing the spread of PFAS chemicals.
Filtration systems were installed at Mount Desert High School several years ago after elevated levels of toxic chemicals were discovered in its drinking water.
#Maine #PFASPollution #FloorWax #Schools #MaineSchools #WaterIsLife #EnvironmentalPollution #CleaningProducts
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Are ‘#ForeverChemicals’ In Your Favorite Sparkling Water? Here’s What to Know
Many brands have #PFAS levels of more than 1 part per trillion, exceeding the #Environmental Working Group's recommendation.
By Melissa Kravitz Hoeffner
Published on April 28, 2024"Bottled and canned water is often considered a healthier or safer option, thanks to purification and processing. But that may not necessarily be the case. In 2020, Consumer Reports ran a study to determine PFAS levels in 47 bottled waters, including 35 noncarbonated and 12 carbonated samples. Many of the carbonated waters had PFAS in them."
https://www.foodandwine.com/pfas-in-sparkling-water-8640113
#PFAS #PFOS #WaterIsLife #WaterPollution #PFASPollution #PFOA #PTFE #Wildlife #Cancer #Contamination #Chemicals #Environment #FoodPackaging #Plastics #FireFightingFoam #Firefighters #Health #Mining #Lubricants #Electronics #Cosmetics #PFNA #PFHxS #PFB #GenXChemicals
#Toxic #DowChemical #DuPont #3M #BASF #Teflon #RainWater #DrinkingWater #BlueTriton #PolandSpring -
‘#ForeverChemicals’ Are Found in Some #Milk, Including #Organic
Story by Lauren Kirchner
May 2, 2024"It was November 2016 when one of the earliest warning signs flashed, in the form of an unassuming and very unlucky dairy farm in #Arundel, #Maine.
"That’s when Fred Stone learned that water on his farm contained high levels of #PFAS. The source of the pollution was later found to be recycled sewage #sludge, which he had been told for many years was a safe #fertilizer. But per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)—otherwise known as “forever chemicals” for their persistence in the environment and in humans—have been linked to cancer, immunity and endocrine problems, and infertility.
"The chemicals had contaminated not just his body but his cows and their milk. The land that three generations of his family had worked on for over a century was now toxic.
"Stone took his story public, and similar reports from other farmers around the country followed. In 2018 a dairy and cattle farmer in New Mexico learned that PFAS-containing firefighting foam from a nearby Air Force base had leached into his well water, putting him out of business. In 2022 Michigan shut down a cattle farm because fertilizer it got from a nearby wastewater treatment plant had contaminated the cows’ feed with PFAS. And earlier this year, the owners of two ranches in Texas said that PFAS-laden fertilizer had killed their livestock and made them sick, too."
#PFAS #PFOS #WaterIsLife #WaterPollution #PFASPollution #PFOA #PTFE #Wildlife #Cancer #Contamination #Chemicals #Environment #FoodPackaging #Plastics #FireFightingFoam #Firefighters #Health #Mining #Lubricants #Electronics #Cosmetics #PFNA #PFHxS #PFB #GenXChemicals
#Toxic #DowChemical #DuPont #3M #BASF #Teflon #RainWater #DrinkingWater -
The #EPA is cracking down on #PFAS — but not in #fertilizer
Story by Zoya Teirstein
4/19/2024"Although the EPA’s new restrictions are groundbreaking, they only apply to a portion of the nation’s extensive PFAS contamination problem. That’s because drinking water isn’t the only way Americans are exposed to PFAS, and not all companies spreading PFAS into the environment deliberately added the chemicals to the products. In Texas, a group of farmers whose properties were contaminated with PFAS from fertilizer are claiming the manufacturer should have done more to warn buyers about the dangers of its products. The first-of-its-kind lawsuit illustrates how much more regulation will be needed to rid the environment — and Americans’ bodies — of forever chemicals."
https://grist.org/agriculture/the-epa-is-cracking-down-on-pfas-but-not-in-fertilizer/
#PFAS #PFOS #WaterIsLife #WaterPollution #PFASPollution #PFOA #PTFE #Wildlife #Cancer #Contamination #Chemicals #Environment #FoodPackaging #Plastics #FireFightingFoam #Firefighters #Health #Mining #Lubricants #Electronics #Cosmetics #PFNA #PFHxS #PFB #GenXChemicals
#Toxic #DowChemical #DuPont #3M #BASF #Teflon #RainWater #DrinkingWater -
LEAVE IT TO HUMANS TO NOT ONLY SH*T WHERE THEY EAT -- BUT WITH HARD TO BREAK FLUORINE-CARBON BONDS! GOOD JOB HUMANS! MAYBE CONSIDER ALL POSSIBLE OUTCOMES BEFORE MAKING STUPID DECISIONS!
‘This is #Chernobyl’: #Texas ranchers say ‘forever chemicals’ in waste-based fertilizers ruined their land
Story by Rebecca Lopez
April 28, 2024"Ranchers here say their cattle, fish and horses are dying and getting sick because of a fertilizer spread on nearby farmland.
"The fertilizer is made from treated human waste from the city of Fort Worth.
"The company that makes the fertilizer says its products meet government standards.
"County officials have launched a criminal investigation, and ranchers are suing, saying runoff from the fertilizer has made their land useless."
#PFAS #PFOS #WaterIsLife #WaterPollution #PFASPollution #PFOA #PTFE #Wildlife #Cancer #Contamination #Chemicals #Environment #FoodPackaging #Plastics #FireFightingFoam #Firefighters #Health #Mining #Lubricants #Electronics #Cosmetics #PFNA #PFHxS #PFB #GenXChemicals
#Toxic #DowChemical #DuPont #3M #BASF #Teflon #RainWater #DrinkingWater -
#Maine Is a Warning for America’s #PFAS Future
Story by Zoë Schlanger
4/11/2024"Cordelia Saunders remembers 2021, the year she and her husband, Nathan, found out that they’d likely been drinking tainted water for more than 30 years. A neighbor’s 20 peach trees had finally matured that summer, and perfect-looking peaches hung from their branches. Cordelia watched the fruit drop to the ground and rot: Her neighbor didn’t dare eat it.
"The Saunderses’ home, in Fairfield, Maine, is in a quiet, secluded spot, 50 minutes from the drama of the rocky coast and an hour and 15 minutes from the best skiing around. It’s also sitting atop a plume of poison.
"For decades, sewage sludge was spread on the corn fields surrounding their house, and on hundreds of other fields across the state. That sludge is suspected to have been tainted with PFAS, a group of man-made compounds that cause a litany of ailments, including kidney and prostate cancers, fertility loss, and developmental disorders. The Saunderses’ property is on one of the most contaminated roads in a state just waking up to the extent of an invisible crisis.
Onur Apul, an environmental engineer at the University of Maine and the head of its initiative to study PFAS solutions, told me that in his opinion, the United States has seen 'nothing as overwhelming, and nothing as universal' as the PFAS crisis. Even the #DDT crisis of the 1960s doesn’t compare, he said: DDT was used only as an insecticide and could be banned by banning that single use. PFAS are used in hundreds of products across industries and consumer sectors. Their nearly 15,000 variations can help make pans nonstick, hiking clothes and plumber’s tape waterproof, and dental floss slippery. They’re in performance fabrics on couches, waterproof mascara, tennis rackets, ski wax. Destroying them demands massive inputs of energy: Their fluorine-carbon bond is the single most stable bond in organic chemistry."
Read more:
https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2024/04/pfas-drinking-water-maine/678040/Archived version:
https://archive.ph/rV2vC#PFAS #PFOS #WaterIsLife #WaterPollution #PFASPollution #PFOA #PTFE #Wildlife #Cancer #Contamination #Chemicals #Environment #FoodPackaging #Plastics #FireFightingFoam #Firefighters #Health #Mining #Lubricants #Electronics #Cosmetics #PFNA #PFHxS #PFB #GenXChemicals
#Toxic #DowChemical #DuPont #3M #BASF #Teflon #RainWater #DrinkingWater -
#Australia among hotspots for toxic ‘#ForeverChemicals’, study of #PFAS levels finds
Australian limits on acceptable levels of these toxic chemicals in drinking water ‘orders of magnitude’ higher than in US
Tory Shepherd
Mon 8 Apr 2024 11.00 EDT"High levels of so-called forever chemicals have been found in surface and groundwater all over the world, with Australia one of several hotspots for toxic PFAS, a University of New South Wales study has found.
"Researchers examined groundwater samples from around the world and found 69% had per-and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) at levels above Canada’s safe drinking water criteria and 32% had levels higher than the US proposed drinking water hazard index.
"They found Australia was one of several 'hotspots' relative to the rest of the world, along with #China, #Europe and #NorthAmerica."
#WaterIsLife #WaterPollution #PFASPollution #PFOS #PFOA #PTFE #Wildlife #Cancer #Contamination #Chemicals #Environment #FoodPackaging #Plastics #FireFightingFoam #Firefighters #Health #Mining #Lubricants #Electronics #Cosmetics #PFNA #PFHxS #PFB #GenXChemicals
#Toxic #DowChemical #DuPont #3M #BASF #Teflon #RainWater #DrinkingWater -
Map: Where the EPA found pollutants
This map shows water systems included in the EPA’s records, as of Jan. 11 [2024]. It’s based on boundaries developed by SimpleLab, a water-testing company. Click on a system to see the number of pollutants detected at or above the EPA’s minimum reporting levels and how much the most concentrated pollutant exceeded those levels. Points represent systems where the exact boundaries are not available.
Link to map:
https://data.usatoday.com/epa-pfas/#PFAS #PFASPollution #WaterIsLife #WaterPollution #PFASPollution #PFOS #PFOA #PTFE #Wildlife #Cancer #Contamination #Chemicals #Environment #FoodPackaging #Plastics #FireFightingFoam #Firefighters #Health #Mining #Lubricants #Electronics #Cosmetics #PFNA #PFHxS #PFB #GenXChemicals
#Toxic #DowChemical #DuPont #3M #BASF #Teflon #RainWater #DrinkingWater -
70 million Americans drink water from systems reporting #PFAS to EPA. Is yours on our map?
by Austin Fast, Cecilia Garzella, Yoonserk Pyun
March 21, 2024"At least 70 million Americans get their water from a system where toxic PFAS 'forever chemicals' were found at levels that require reporting to the Environmental Protection Agency.
"That's according to new data the EPA released in its ongoing 5-year review of water systems across the nation. The number will almost certainly grow as new reports are released every three months.
"PFAS, or per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances, are nearly indestructible chemicals widely used across industries for decades. Found in drinking water, food, firefighting foam, and nonstick and water-repellent items, PFAS resist degradation, building up in both the environment and our bodies.
"#SaltLakeCity; #SacramentoCalifornia; #MadisonWisconsin; and #LouisvilleKentucky, were among the major systems reporting PFAS contamination to the EPA in the latest data release."
#WaterIsLife #WaterPollution #PFASPollution #PFOS #PFOA #PTFE #Wildlife #Cancer #Contamination #Chemicals #Environment #FoodPackaging #Plastics #FireFightingFoam #Firefighters #Health #Mining #Lubricants #Electronics #Cosmetics #PFNA #PFHxS #PFB #GenXChemicals
#Toxic #DowChemical #DuPont #3M #BASF #Teflon #RainWater #DrinkingWater -
#PFAS '#ForeverChemicals' above drinking water guidelines in global source #water
We’re likely underestimating the future impact of PFAS in the environment, a new UNSW Sydney-led study shows.
by Sherry Landow
April 8, 2024"Per-and poly-fluoroalkyl substances – commonly known as PFAS – are a group of over 14,000 human-made chemicals that have been popular since the 1950s for their diverse uses in resisting heat, water, grease and stains.
"They’ve been commonly found in household products like #nonStick frying pans, clothing, cosmetics, insecticides, and food packaging, as well as specialty industry products, like #FirefightingFoam.
"But despite their broad skillset, the chemicals have a dark side: they’re known as ‘forever chemicals’ because once they’re in the environment – or our bodies – they don’t degrade further.
"PFAS have been linked to environmental and health issues, including some #cancers, but a lot remains unknown about the true scale and potential impacts of the problem – including how much is in our water supply.
"A new UNSW-led international study, published today in Nature Geoscience, assessed the levels of PFAS contamination in surface and ground water around the globe.
"It found that much of our global source water exceeds PFAS safe drinking limits.
"'Many of our source waters are above PFAS regulatory limits,' says senior author of the study, UNSW Engineering Professor Denis O’Carroll.
"'We already knew that PFAS is pervasive in the environment, but I was surprised to find out the large fraction of source waters that are above drinking water advisory recommendations,' he says.
"'We're talking above 5 per cent, and it goes over 50 per cent in some cases.'"
#WaterIsLife #WaterPollution #PFASPollution #PFOS #PFOA #PTFE #Wildlife #Cancer #Contamination #Chemicals #Environment #FoodPackaging #Plastics #FireFightingFoam #Firefighters #Health #Mining #Lubricants #Electronics #Cosmetics #PFNA #PFHxS #PFB #GenXChemicals
#Toxic #DowChemical #DuPont #3M #BASF #Teflon #RainWater #DrinkingWater -
It's about f-ing time!!! WTF!
The #EPA is proposing that '#ForeverChemicals' be considered #hazardous substances
by Ayana ArchieFeb, 02 2024"The Environmental Protection Agency is proposing that nine #PFAS, also known as "forever chemicals," be categorized as hazardous to human health.
"The EPA signed a proposal Wednesday that would deem the chemicals "hazardous constituents" under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.
"For the agency to consider a substance a hazardous constituent, it has to be toxic or cause cancer, genetic mutation or the malformations of an embryo. The full list of the nine substances can be found here.
"The agency cited various studies in which forever chemicals were found to cause a litany of "t#oxic effects" in humans and #animals, including, but not limited to cancer, a decreased response to vaccinations, #HighCholesterol, decrease in #fertility in women, #preeclampsia, #thyroid disorders and #asthma, the EPA said.
"Short for "per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances," PFAS cover thousands of man-made chemicals. PFAS are often used for manufacturing purposes, such as in #NonstickCookware, #adhesives, #firefighting foam, #turf and more [ex, #SkiWax].
"PFAS have been called "forever chemicals" because they break down very slowly and can accumulate in people, animals and the environment. Last summer, a study by the U.S. Geological Survey found that the man-made chemicals are present in nearly half the country's tap water supply.
"The survey tested for 32 types of PFAS, though there are more than 12,000, the USGS said, and they can pose a health threat even at very small amounts.
"In June, the chemical manufacturer 3M said it would pay about $10 billion in lawsuit settlements to help detoxify water supplies across the country, after plaintiffs claimed the company's firefighting foam and other products were responsible for contaminating #TapWater with PFAS.
"The proposed rule will be open for #PublicComment once it is uploaded to the Federal Register, under docket number EPA-HQ-OLEM-2023-0278."
#PFASPollution #PFOS #WaterIsLife #Wildlife #Cancer #Contamination #Chemicals #Environment #FoodPackaging #Plastics #FireFightingFoam #Firefighters #Health #Mining #Lubricants #Electronics #Cosmetics #PFOS #PFNA #PFHxS #PFB GenXChemicals
#PFOA #Toxic #DowChemical #DuPont #3M #BASF #Teflon #RainWater #SkiWax