Near Zero Health Advisories for PFAS Chemicals Announced by U.S. EPA

For decades, scientific research documented that the family of chemicals called PFAS had harmful health effects. Recently, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) adopted new health advisories for four specific types of PFAS. The new health advisories are 17,500 times lower for PFOA and 3,500 times lower for PFOS than the U.S. EPA health advisories established in 2016. The new advisory states that adverse health effects could occur at concentrations near zero, even below what testing equipment can detect.

Unfortunately, these health advisories are non-enforceable and serve only as public health goals. Some Great Lakes states have adopted drinking water standards for selected types of PFAS. Yet they vary greatly and are well above the newly released health advisories of the U.S. EPA. What we are left with is a hodgepodge of regulations in the Great Lakes region and the country to address these toxic chemicals in our drinking water.

While the U.S. EPA continues to evaluate potential PFAS exposure and update health advisories, there are still more than 9,000 different PFAS compounds, for most of which the health impacts are not well understood. Because there are more than 9,000 specific types of PFAS, they should be regulated as a group rather than one by one.

Proposed drinking water standards for PFAS are expected to be released by the U.S. EPA by the end of 2022, followed by a 60 day public comment period and a public hearing. The finalized rule won’t be finalized until the end of 2023. Freshwater Future will keep you informed of opportunities to engage on federal drinking water standards.

To find out about your Great Lakes state, check Freshwater Future’s summary.  Click HERE for pdf.