#pfaspollution — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #pfaspollution, aggregated by home.social.
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#Dupont Finally Held Accountable for #PFASPollution in Historic Settlement Valued Over $2B
August 4, 2025
Excerpt:
"NJ Sierra Club Chapter Director, Anjuli Ramos-Busot, issued the following statement:" '#DuPont has been knowingly poisoning our lands and waters for decades. As an entity of chemical innovation, DuPont brought prosperity to New Jersey. But, like with all polluters with a ROI bottom line, the true impact brought to #NewJersey was hidden from us. However, now the contamination from DuPont is so obvious and widespread throughout the state that they can no longer hide. We are now at the point where we have entered the billion-dollar level to clean up #PFAS pollution, which goes to show the severity of contamination. DuPont has finally been held responsible for what they have done to New Jersey, to our public health, and to our environment.
" 'Can we call this justice? Not yet. DuPont has done this across the world and in many other parts of the country. Until all of those sites are cleaned up and PFAS is no longer in our environment or in our blood, then we can call it justice.
" 'Today’s settlement is an incredible and historical achievement for New Jersey. This is the state’s third PFAS settlement with corporate polluters to come in two years, which continues to reinforce that their negligence will no longer be tolerated.
" 'As we face the dismantling of the EPA , rollbacks in PFAS regulations, and the cutting of environmental protections at the federal level, we must step up in New Jersey to protect ourselves and ensure clean drinking water and air for all. We thank Attorney General Platkin and NJDEP Commissioner LaTourette for doing just that, for standing up to the multi-billion dollar chemical industry in an incredible legal fight with one of the titans of the industry, and we urge them to keep the momentum going.' "
#DuPontLied #DuPontKnew #DupontdeNemours #BigChem #PFasPollution #ForeverChemicals #WaterIsLife #LandIsLife
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#Australia: Research shows #NativePlants can detox #PFAS-contaminated #water
New research from Australia's national science agency #CSIRO, the #UniversityOfSouthAustralia and the #UniversityOfWesternAustralia has found that PFAS chemicals can be removed from contaminated water using Australian plants grown in a floating #wetland.
May 4, 2022
"They’re the non-stick on #Teflon cookware, the stain resistance in #Scotchgard, and the suppression factor in #FirefightingFoam, but while the staying power of PFAS chemicals was once revered, it’s now infamous as PFAS substances continue to infiltrate the #environment and affect human health.
"Now, new research from the University of South Australia is helping to remediate the ‘indestructible’ PFASs as scientists show that Australian native plants can significantly remediate PFAS pollutants through floating wetlands to create healthier environments for all.
"Conducted in partnership with CSIRO and the University of Western Australia, the research found that PFAS chemicals (per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances) can be removed from contaminated water via Australian #NativeRushes - #PhragmitesAustralis, #BaumeaArticulata, and #JuncusKraussii.
"Phragmites australis, otherwise known as the #CommonReed, removed legacy PFAS contaminants by 42-53 per cent from contaminated surface water (level: 10 µg/L).
"According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, exposure to PFAS may lead to a range of health issues including a decline in fertility, developmental delays in children, increased risk of some cancers, a reduced immune system, higher cholesterol, and risk of obesity.
"UniSA and CSIRO researcher Dr John Awad says that this research could alleviate many of these environmental and health risks by providing a clean, green, and cost-effective method to remove PFAS from the environment.
" 'PFASs are often referred to as ‘forever chemicals’ because they don’t break down, instead accumulating in the environment and in our bodies where they can cause adverse health effects,' Dr Awad says.
" 'In Australia, PFAS concerns often relate to the use of firefighting foam – especially legacy firefighting foam – which accumulates in the #SurfaceWater of our #waterways.
" 'Our research tested the effectiveness of Australian rushes to remove #PFASChemicals from #stormwater, finding that Phragmites australis was the most effective at absorbing chemicals through its roots and shoots.'
"The study used constructed floating wetlands as a mechanism for plants to grow #hydroponically. Dr Awad says floating wetlands present a novel and flexible way for natural #remediation systems.
" 'Constructed floating wetlands can be readily installed into existing urban environments, such as holding reservoirs and retention basins, making them highly manoeuvrable and adaptable to local waterways,' Dr Awad says.
" 'Plus, as this innovative water treatment system does not require pumping or the ongoing addition of #chemicals, it is a #CostEffective remediation system for PFAS removal.
" 'Add native plants to the mix and we have delivered a truly clean, green and environmentally-friendly method for removing toxic PFAS chemicals from contaminated water.' "
Notes to editors:
- So far, the floating wetlands system has only been examined under control laboratory conditions for PFAS remediation and the research team is looking forward to testing it in the real world, under natural conditions.
- This research is being carried out at the UniSA Mawson Lakes campus. PFAS has not been detected in or around Mawson lakes."Original press release:
https://www.unisa.edu.au/media-centre/Releases/2022/hydroponic-native-plants-to-detox-pfas-contaminated-water/#SolarPunkSunday #PFAScontamination #ForeverChemicals #Remediation #PollutionSolutions #WaterIsLife #PFASPollution #Remediation #PFASRemoval #PFASRemediation
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#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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Notorious US #ChemicalPlant polluting water with toxic #PFAS, lawsuit claims
Complaint says #Chemours factory dramatized in Hollywood movie #DarkWaters continues to pollute #WestVirginia river
by Tom Perkins, January 27, 2025
"The chemical giant Chemours’s notorious West Virginia PFAS plant is regularly polluting nearby water with high levels of toxic 'forever chemicals', a new lawsuit alleges.
"It represents the latest salvo in a decades-old fight over pollution from the plant, called Washington Works, which continues despite public health advocates winning significant legal battles.
The new federal complaint claims #WashingtonWorks has been spitting out levels of PFAS waste significantly higher than what a discharge permit has allowed since 2023, which is contaminating the #OhioRiver in #ParkersburgWestVirginia, a town of about 50,000 people in #Appalachia.
"The factory was the focal point of a Hollywood movie, Dark Waters. It dramatized the story of how the pollution widely sickened Parkersburg residents, and the David v Goliath legal saga in which a group of residents and attorneys took on Chemours, then part of DuPont.
The findings ‘highlight the importance of careful scrutiny of novel chemicals’, said Irene Jacz, a study co-author and Iowa State economist."An epidemiological study stemming from the case blew the lid off of the health risks of PFAS, and ultimately cost #DuPont about $700m.
"Though the landmark case still reverberates across the regulatory landscape, the suit started almost 25 years ago, concluded in 2016, and Chemours’s pollution continues. The new lawsuit is part of other legal actions related to the facility that have filled the gap left by weak regulatory action, local advocates say. The never-ending struggle 'wears you out', added Joe Kiger, a Parkersburg resident who was one of the original litigants in 2001.
"'We have put up with this for 24 years, and [Chemours] is still polluting, they’re still putting this stuff in the water,' Kiger said.
"The new lawsuit, filed by the #WestVirginiaRiversCoalition, alleges 'numerous violations' since the level of PFAS the company is permitted to discharge per a consent order was lowered in early 2023. Among the contaminants are #PFOA, a PFAS chemical to which virtually no level of exposure in drinking water is safe, the #EnvironmentalProtectionAgency (#EPA) has found. It also includes #GenX, a compound for which the EPA has similarly found very low exposure levels can cause health problems.
"The EPA ordered Chemours to take corrective action, but the company has done nothing in response, and the agency has not taken further action, the suit states. The complaint does not mention drinking water, which is largely filtered. But the suit alleges the ongoing pollution prevents residents from using the river for recreation.
"In a statement, Chemours said the 'concerns are being addressed' through the consent order. It also noted it was renewing discharge permits with the state, and was working with regulators 'to navigate both the consent order and the permit renewal process'.
"'Chemours recognizes the Coalition as a community stakeholder and invites the Coalition to engage directly with the Washington Works team,' a spokesperson wrote.
"The EPA and West Virginia Rivers Coalition declined to comment because litigation is ongoing.
"Kiger and others who have taken on Chemours and DuPont railed against the company, accusing it of 'greed' and putting profits above residents’ health. Some in Parkersburg refer to the waste as the 'Devil's Piss'.
"'They do what they can to make money,' said Harry Deitzler, a West Virginia attorney who helped lead past lawsuits.
"'The officers in the corporation sometimes don’t care about what’s right and wrong – they need to make money for shareholders and the lawsuits make everyone play by the same rules.'
"Still, most residents are not aware of the ongoing pollution, those who spoke with the Guardian say. Chemours is a large employer that still wields power locally, and spends heavily on charitable giving. Many remain supportive of the company, regardless of the pollution, Kiger said.
"'That’s the kind of stuff you’re up against,' he added. 'People put a blind trust in them. It could be snowing out and Chemours would tell everyone it’s 80F [27C] and sunny, and everyone will grab their tan lotion.'
"The saga began in the late 1990s when the plant’s pollution was suspected of sickening nearby livestock, and an investigation by attorneys revealed the alarming levels at which PFAS was being discharged into the water and environment.
"A class action lawsuit yielded about $70m in damages for area residents in 2004, but the litigation did not prove DuPont’s PFAS pollution was behind a rash of #cancer, #KidneyDisease, stubbornly high cholesterol and other widespread health problems in the region.
"Instead of dividing the settlement up among tens of thousands of residents, which would have only provided each with several hundred dollars, the money went toward developing an epidemiological study with independent scientists to verify that widespread local health issues were caused by DuPont’s pollution.
"The move was a gamble that ultimately paid off – the study of about 70,000 people showed by 2012 that PFOA probably caused some forms of cancer, #ThyroidDisease, persistently #HighCholesterol, pregnancy-induced #hypertension and #autoimmune problems.
"Subsequent studies have shown links between the chemical and a host of other serious health problems – #BirthDefects, #neurotoxicity, kidney disease and #LiverDisease – that residents in the area suffered.
"DuPont and Chemours in 2017 settled for $671m in costs for about 3,500 injury suits, and have paid more to install water-filtration systems throughout the region. Separately, Chemours in 2023 settled with the state of #Ohio for $110m for pollution largely from Washington Works.
"The EPA and state regulatory agencies have at times been staffed with former DuPont managers or industry allies, and litigation has been the only way to get any meaningful movement, said Rob Bilott, the attorney who led the original class-action suit.
'"It’s infuriating,' Bilott said. 'It took decades of making DuPont documents and internal data public, and getting the story out through movies, news articles, books and public engagement, and that’s what finally pushed the needle here. This is the impact of citizens forcing it through decades of litigation.'
"The latest lawsuit is a citizen’s suit under the #CleanWaterAct. Such suits give citizens the power to ask a judge to enforce federal law when a polluter is violating it and regulators fail to act.
"The lawsuit asks a judge to order the company to pay $66,000 for each day it has been in violation, which is stipulated in the permit. That would total around $50m, but the main goal is to stop the pollution.
"The EPA has acknowledged Chemours is violating the law, but has 'taken no further enforcement action regarding Chemours’s violations as of the date of this complaint', the suit reads."
Source:
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jan/27/chemours-pfas-pollution-lawsuitArchived:
https://archive.ph/p3wA6
#Environment #PFASPollution #PollutionRunoff #WaterIsLife #DevilsPiss -
‘#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