Great - now we're learning that we've fucked up the planet to the point that even the rain is trying to kill us off.
Most Rainwater on Earth Contains PFAS Exceeding Safe Levels, Study Finds
New research from Stockholm University shows that PFAS in rainwater around the world are exceeding safe levels. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are chemical pollutants, often called “forever chemicals” present in many everyday items, like food packaging and clothing. The chemicals leach into the environment, affecting everything from the air we breathe to even rainfall.
The study, published in Environmental Science & Technology, tested four selected perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAAs): perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS), perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), perfluorohexanesulfonic acid (PFHxS), and perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA) in rainwater, soil, and surface waters in different locations globally.
The researchers concluded that PFOA and PFOS levels in rainwater “greatly exceed” the Lifetime Drinking Water Health Advisory levels from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The study also noted that all four of the tested PFAAs in rainwater were often above the Danish drinking water limits, and PFOS levels were usually higher than the Environmental Quality Standard for Inland European Union Surface Water.
Rainwater wasn’t the only problem, either. “Atmospheric deposition also leads to global soils being ubiquitously contaminated and to be often above proposed Dutch guideline values,” the study said.
As such, the authors said there is really no way to avoid these chemicals on Earth anymore.
“We argue here that we’re not within this safe operating space anymore, because we now have these chemicals everywhere, and these safety advisories, we can’t achieve them anymore,” said Ian Cousins, lead author of the study and professor at Stockholm University. “I’m not saying that we’re all going to die of these effects. But we’re in a place now where you can’t live anywhere on the planet, and be sure that the environment is safe.”
PFAS earned the name “forever chemicals” due to their inability to break down in the environment. The CDC noted that these pollutants move through soils and waters in the environment and can bioaccumulate in wildlife. Humans can also breathe in PFAS, and the pollutants can also get into the bloodstream.
While more studies on the effects of PFAS on human health are needed, existing studies suggest there could be links between “forever chemicals” and certain types of cancer, reproductivity issues and developmental delays.
Scientists are concerned that the increasing amounts of PFAS in drinking water could show an increase in health complications in the future, though.
“In this background rain, the levels are higher than those environmental quality criteria already. So that means that over time, we are going to get a statistically significant impact of those chemicals on human health,” Crispin Halsall, a professor at the University of Lancaster who was not involved with the study, told the BBC. “And how that will manifest itself? I’m not sure but it’s going come out over time, because we’re exceeding those concentrations which are going to cause some harm, because of exposure to humans in their drinking water.”
Some governments are creating more relaxed PFAS limits as well. With the prominence of PFAS, strict limits on PFAS levels have halted construction projects, leading some places to loosen the guidelines to avoid impacting economic activities.
The other option is to remove these pervasive pollutants from water and soil. Current methods of removing PFAS are expensive, although some scientists are developing sustainable, low-cost ways to remove PFAS from the environment.
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Also EcoWatch:
Scientists Develop New Material to Clean Up Forever Chemicals
Researchers from Texas A&M AgriLife of Texas A&M University have developed a new bioremediation technology using plant-based material and fungi that could take care of cleaning up per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. These pollutants, also called “forever chemicals” or PFAS, are found in soil, water, and even human and animal blood and may be harmful to humans and other species.
PFAS are found just about everywhere, from food wrappers and dental floss to clothing and electrical wire insulation. While more research is needed on health implications from PFAS exposure, the CDC notes that these chemicals may affect development, reproduction and the immune system and may cause liver damage. Extremely high exposures of PFAS may also be linked to cancer.
“PFAS do not degrade easily in the environment and are toxic even at trace level concentrations,” said Susie Dai, associate professor in the Texas A&M Department of Plant Pathology and Microbiology. “They must be removed and destroyed to prevent human exposure and negative impacts on the ecosystem. PFAS are so stable because they are composed of a chain of carbon and fluorine atoms linked together, and the carbon-fluorine bond is one of the strongest chemical bonds. They can occur in water at a very low concentration and you have to concentrate them and then destroy them.”
The only way to actually get rid of these “forever chemicals” is by burning them, which is a lengthy and expensive process. After incineration, other products, like active carbon, are used to finally clean up the PFAS.
But Texas A&M researchers have found a new way to use a plant-based material that adsorbs the pollutants. As explained by ScienceDirect, adsorption is “The use of solids for removing substances from either gaseous or liquid solutions.” The adsorbent material is then consumed by microbial fungi. The team recently published their findings for the process framework, which they call Renewable Artificial Plant for In-situ Microbial Environmental Remediation (RAPIMER), in Nature.
“The plant’s cell wall material serves as a framework to adsorb the PFAS,” Dai explained. “Then this material and the adsorbed chemical serve as food for a microbial fungus. The fungus eats it, it’s gone, and you don’t have the disposal problem. Basically, the fungus is doing the detoxification process.”
This sustainable PFAS clean-up system could scale for commercial use, leading to a better way to remove these chemical pollutants from the environment. It could also come in handy as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency considers creating PFAS thresholds to its water quality standards, which will require municipal water treatment plants to find cost-effective solutions to monitor and remove PFAS from the water if necessary.
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