When it comes to the so-called "forever chemicals" known as PFAS, most of the worst health risks come from lots of exposure over a long period of time.
PFAS include thousands of different contaminants. Some of the ones we know the most about were created decades ago and chemical companies have stopped making them — like C8, which used to be on Teflon.
“Those are the ones that regulators are focusing on the most, those legacy PFAS. In part because we think they’re particularly toxic,” said Kirin Furst, an associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech. “In part maybe just because we have more data about their toxicities.”
Chemical companies are now making new types of forever chemicals, like GenX, which was discovered in the Roanoke River several years ago. The federal government is making moves to roll back new regulations that would monitor and limit those newer PFAS chemicals in our water.
Furst, who is also co-director of the Occoquan Watershed Monitoring Laboratory, said drought can make PFAS levels higher.
“Under lower flow conditions, which you see in a drought, you can see an increase in PFAS concentrations,” Furst said. “But it totally depends on what the sources are.”
But on the flip side, heavy rainfall can also cause PFAS levels to rise if there are industrial sites nearby that contain contaminants.
Some PFAS could end up in vegetables in our garden, but Furst says it’s likely at low levels. She said the health benefits of eating healthy, fresh food probably outweigh the risks from getting too much PFAS from our garden.
Scientists are still learning how PFAS interact with the environment and how we could try to remove them.
“So it seems like just a global phenomenon at this point,” Furst explained. “Like we’ve just injected so much PFAS into the air, that it’s gonna be there awhile.”
Residents can reach out to their local water system to learn what PFAS levels have been detected for their area.
Filters are available for drinking water, but the Environmental Protection Agency recommends checking that it’s been certified by the National Sanitation Foundation to remove PFAS.
