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EWG Report: Perfluorinated Pollutant (PFAS) Contamination of Water Spreading

EWG Report: Perfluorinated Pollutant (PFAS) Contamination of Water Spreading | Newtown News of Interest | Scoop.it

The chemicals are in the drinking water of about 16 million Americans, a nonprofit group has calculated.

 

A new analysis from the Environmental Working Group, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit, finds that drinking water contamination with PFAS chemicals now exists in 36 states.

 

The pollutants, also known as perfluorinated compounds, have been found at high levels in the drinking water of approximately 70,000 residents in Bucks and Montgomery counties and are the subject of ongoing investigation by this news organization.

 

According to a new mapping effort by the Environmental Working Group, known drinking water contamination sites have grown from just a handful a decade ago to more than 94 locations. That includes dozens of military bases where the chemicals were used in firefighting foams, as well as near industrial plants that used the chemicals in manufacturing processes.

 

The chemicals have been linked by some studies to health effects including high cholesterol, ulcerative colitis, immunodeficiencies, low birth weight babies and some cancers. However, researchers say much about potential health effects is still unknown, prompting lawmakers to provide $10 million this year to fund a nationwide federal health study on the chemicals.

 

Despite growing concerns, the chemicals remain unregulated by the Environmental Protection Agency. EPA officials previously said they are considering the creation of a formal safe drinking water limit for the chemicals but might not decide until 2021. In lieu of federal action, states such as New Jersey and Michigan have passed or proposed regulations such as drinking water and surface water limits, as well as limits for the consumption of sport fish. Pennsylvania is considering regulation of one chemical, PFOA.

 

“With the alarming spread of known PFAS contamination sites, it’s unconscionable that the Environmental Protection Agency has taken only the most feeble steps to respond to the crisis,” said Bill Walker, an investigative editor for the Environmental Working Group, in a prepared statement. “States are stepping up to set cleanup standards, but a national crisis demands a national response.”

johnmacknewtown's insight:

At an August, 2017, Board of Supervisors meeting, Dan Angove, Assistant General Manager of Newtown Artesian Water Company, claimed that EWG, which is responsible for this analysis, is a "California resident who was working for a company selling water fitters." Read "Company Discounts Study That Found 7 Carcinogens."

 

Also read: "PFAS From Tainted Water on Military Bases My Be Spreading to Other Towns in Bucks, Montco"

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