Some Hard Facts About Forever Chemicals
The presence of “forever chemicals”, PFOA and PFHxS, in Kalispell drinking water prompts questions. These chemicals, which belong to the family of per-and polyfluoroalkyl compounds, were found in three wells at levels exceeding proposed federal water standards. Are they harming the Flathead Watershed and aquatic life? Are they harmful to humans at modest or elevated concentrations? Can we do anything to reduce exposure to them?
The chemicals are no longer made in the U.S., perhaps since 1976. They are still produced in other countries and are found in consumer products in the U.S., such as cosmetics. They do not decompose and are ubiquitously present in: leachates (the liquids that drain from landfills); sewage; biosolids created in the treatment of sewage (and sometimes sprayed on agricultural fields as fertilizers); firefighting foam; other consumer products (water repellant clothing, dental floss, and food packaging), and packaged composting material which incorporate biosolids from some sewage treatment plants. They have obviously been present in the groundwater near Kalispell for an indeterminate period.
These chemicals have been studied in laboratory animals, helping to establish new enforceable federal maximum contaminant levels for five polyfluoroalkys in drinking water. Municipal water treatment plants will be held to this standard. Ten states, not including Montana, have previously had enforceable PFA drinking water standards. The new enforceable maximum contaminant level fo the five PFA chemicals is four parts per trillion. The EPA newly recommends that no PFOA and PFOS, two of the myriad polyfluoroalkys, be found in drinking water. There are no federal or state standards for leachate and biosolid PFOA and PFOS permissible amounts.
Do per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances pose health dangers for humans? Ongoing epidemiological studies suggest increased risks of testicular and kidney cancer in workers at PHOA chemical plants and in residents living close to them. Two major public health organizations have the power and research background to qualify substances as carcinogenic: the International Agency for Research in Cancer (IARC) and the Environmental Protection Agency(EPA). The IARC, a World Health Organization affiliate, has classified PFOA as carcinogenic based upon evidence in laboratory animal studies. But the IARC notes limited evidence in humans that PFOA can cause testicular and kidney cancer and inadequate evidence that PFOS can cause human cancer. Despite the headline-grabbing change by the EPA in enforceable water drinking standards, it has not officially classified PFOA and PFOS as carcinogenic. Forever chemicals present in humans in high concentrations may lead to increased cholesterol and LDL levels, changes in liver enzymes of unknown significance, decreased vaccine response in children, immune system compromise, high blood pressure and preeclampsia in laboring women, and small decreases in infant birth weights. The Montana DEQ has recently tested northern Flathead Lake and River (near Kalispell) along with several species of resident fish for per- and polyfluoralkyl levels. The results will be analyzed and published by the end of June.
Means of removing PFOA and PFOS at water treatment facilities are available. Household water filtration systems are being studied for PFOA/PFOS effectiveness. Reverse osmosis systems are currently the best at removing short and long chain polyfluorylalkys. It is known that PFOA and PFOS accumulate in aquatic life and fish-eating raptors. I was not able to investigate ecosystem contamination further.
Individuals should know the source of their water and gardening compost material. Treat personal well water with filtration. Demand water testing if you drink well water and you live close to a chemical plant or firefighting site (airport). Personal testing of well water is expensive. Read the labels on composting materials. Detailed information is available on the EPA and other websites.
Written by Mark Peterson - Physician and Flathead Lakers' board member