Per-and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a group of more than 14,000 chemicals commonly used for their resistance to heat, water, grease, and stains, have been integrated into a vast array of consumer products since the 1950s. These so-called ‘forever chemicals’ are now causing alarm due to their persistence in the environment and potential health risks. A new study led by the University of New South Wales (UNSW) in Sydney has revealed that PFAS contamination in global source waters significantly surpasses safe drinking limits, calling into question the safety of our water supply.
The groundbreaking research assessed the levels of PFAS in surface and groundwater worldwide, utilizing over 45,000 data points collected from government reports, databases, and peer-reviewed literature over two decades. The results were startling. “Many of our source waters are above PFAS regulatory limits,” said Denis O’Carroll, a professor of engineering at UNSW and the senior author of the study. “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. We’re talking above 5 percent, and it goes over 50 percent in some cases.”
PFAS chemicals are notorious for their inability to degrade in the environment or the human body, earning them the title ‘forever chemicals’. Although PFAS have been linked to various health issues, including some cancers, the complete scope of their impact remains uncertain. The World Health Organization (WHO) recently classified PFOA, one variant of PFAS, as a category one human carcinogen. Despite this, there is still no universal consensus on the health implications of PFAS, which is evident in the differing regulatory limits for PFAS around the world.
The study published in Nature Geoscience indicates that 69 percent of worldwide groundwater samples exceeded the safety benchmarks for drinking water set by Health Canada, while 32 percent surpassed the United States’ hazard index for drinking water. The discrepancies in PFAS regulation are stark. For example, in Australia, the combined limit for PFOS and another compound, PFHxS, is set at 70 nanograms per liter, which is significantly higher than the US’s proposed drinking water limits of four nanograms per liter for PFOS and PFOA. These conflicting standards highlight a lack of consensus on what constitutes safe levels of PFAS and underline the need for further research and potential reevaluation of regulatory frameworks.
Despite these concerns, O’Carroll reassures that “Drinking water is largely safe, and I don’t hesitate drinking it.” He also emphasized that bottled water is not necessarily better than tap water, as it may not be subjected to different treatment standards. However, he calls for more monitoring of PFAS levels and transparency in data availability.
The study’s findings underscore the need for a cautious approach to the use of PFAS-containing products, urging manufacturers and consumers to consider the environmental and health implications of these chemicals. Moreover, it highlights the imperative for developing new technologies to mitigate PFAS in drinking water systems and predictive models to forecast the distribution of PFAS in the environment.
Relevant articles:
– PFAS ‘forever chemicals’ levels exceed drinking water guidelines in large fraction of global surface and groundwater
– Global source water exceeds safe drinking limits of PFAS, Earth.com, Mon, 08 Apr 2024 23:57:42 GMT
– ‘Forever chemicals’ of the modern world that will not go away, The Mandarin, Mon, 08 Apr 2024 20:31:23 GMT