Heartache, Anger, Wash. Drinking Water Wells Tainted, Forever Chemicals PFAS SeaTimes: 8 AL Rivers..

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Last edited Tue Oct 25, 2022, 04:18 PM - Edit history (1)

- 'Heartache, anger in Central Washington over drinking-water wells tainted by 'forever chemicals,' The Seattle Times, Oct. 23, 2022. - Ed.

-- PFAS can be found in products ranging from nonstick pans to waterproof coatings on jackets, fast food wrappers & even some kinds of dental floss. Since the 1950s, they have been used in hundreds of different mfg. & industrial processes. People most often are exposed to PFAS as they eat food or drink water containing traces of the chemicals. PFAS can also enter the body by breathing contaminated dust. --

SELAH, Yakima County — In 2016, Brandi & Brad Hyatt purchased a 3-bedroom home with sweeping views of the Cascades, Mt. Rainier & Mount Adams. Their house sits more than 4 miles east of this Central Wash. community, beyond the reach of Selah’s public water system. So, the couple & their 2 children relied on a well punched into a basalt lava rock aquifer to quench their thirst, cook, clean & bathe. In Feb., 2 U.S. Army representatives knocked on the Hyatts’ door to deliver cases of bottled water & a carefully worded letter that noted a “potential risk to human health.”

The Hyatts’ well was one of 300 residential drinking water wells tested for contamination from 2 firefighting foam chemicals that seeped into groundwater flows from the Army’s Yakima Training Center.

They are part of a class of “forever chemicals” — per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances known as PFAS — that rank as one of the most pervasive sources of pollution on the planet. They are found in soil, air, water & even the snow of Antarctica. In the human body, the 2 firefighting foam chemicals may disrupt the immune system, interfere with hormones, increase the risk of prostate, kidney & testicular cancers, high blood pressure in pregnant women harm the reproductive system, according to studies cited by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Brandi Hyatt, after moving into house, started suffering from a thyroid condition with symptoms that included chronic fatigue, shortness of breath, stomach & chest pains.

Some studies have shown that the firefighting foam chemicals, which were present in each glass of water she filled from the family tap, increase the risks of such illness. “So many people have thyroid diseases, & I have always been a bit embarrassed by how out of control mine is,” Hyatt said. “Why is mine so all over the map? Maybe it is this poison that my body can’t clear — that I’ve been drinking for years now.” Yakima Training Center is one of 5 military installations in Wash. state where PFAS was used & then later detected in drinking water wells in nearby communities.

Since the summer of 2021, the Army has been investigating the chemicals' spread to residences around the training center by paying to test wells. Officials use the results to determine who to provide bottled water as well as longer-term assisance for drinking & other uses. In Yakima & elsewhere, the Defense Dept. has set this threshold at the level of a 2016 EPA advisory - the limit at 70 parts per trillion for someone drinking from the same water source through their lifetime. But in June, the EPA dramatically lowered the lifetime advisory level of the 2 chemicals to less than 1 part per trillion. Wash. state officials earlier this year also set a much limit lower than the Defense Dept...

- More, https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/times-watchdog/heartache-anger-in-central-washington-over-drinking-water-wells-tainted-by-forever-chemicals/
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* 'It’s time to designate ‘forever chemicals’ as hazardous substances ‘expeditiously,’ 150 groups say,' EWG/Environ. Working Group, 0ct. 2022.

WASHINGTON – A letter sent today to the Environmental Protection Agency by 150 environmental, health and justice organizations, including the Environmental Working Group, is pressing for final designation of 2 “forever chemicals” as hazardous substances. The letter to EPA Administrator Michael Regan urges the agency to finalize the classification “expeditiously.”

The agency proposed the designation of the 2 most notorious PFAS – PFOA and PFOS – nearly a month ago.

The letter underscores strong support for the EPA’s designation from low-income communities and communities of color, which often bear disproportionate exposure to chemical pollution. “The EPA’s proposal to designate these 2 forever chemicals as hazardous is ushering in accountability for polluters,” said Sanja Whittington, executive director of Democracy Green.

-> PFOS, formerly an ingredient in 3M’s Scotchgard, and PFOA, formerly used by DuPont to make Teflon, are part of a class of toxic forever chemicals, so-called because once released into the environment they do not break down, and many build up in our blood and organs. PFAS have been linked to serious health concerns, including cancer, harm to fetal development and reduced vaccine effectiveness.

The designation will jump-start the cleanup process at contaminated sites across the country, including military installations. It will also help ensure PFAS polluters help pay for cleanup. “The EPA’s proposal represents a major step forward for cleaning up contamination from polluters,” said Anthony Spaniola, co-chair of the Great Lakes PFAS Action Network. The agency is accepting comments on the designation until Nov. 7. The proposal fulfills one of President Joe Biden’s promises as part of a government-wide plan to tackle PFAS, announced in Oct. 2021.

- Tell Congress: Stop the PFAS Contamination Crisis. We need your help to protect our water from toxic PFAS chemicals.

https://www.ewg.org/news-insights/news-release/2022/10/its-time-designate-forever-chemicals-hazardous-substances
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** "PFAS POLLUTE 83% OF U.S. WATERWAYS," EE News Oct. 18, 2022 **

The overwhelming majority of U.S. waterways are likely polluted with “forever chemicals,” according to a grim new analysis that comes as the country marks a half-century of its landmark water protection law. PFAS have cropped in detectable levels across 83% of waterways tested across the country, per findings from the nonprofit Waterkeeper Alliance, which represents U.S. watershed monitors. Those numbers reflect the presence of the chemicals in 114 waterways across 29 states & the D.C. During a press conference Tues., Waterkeeper Alliance CEO Marc Yaggi said his organization’s findings should send a warning message to the public, along with officials.

“Existing laws & regulations are inadequate for protecting us,” Yaggi said.

The analysis, which relied on testing from 34 states & Wash., D.C., showed per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in most of the waterways. Those without PFAS detections were largely in undeveloped areas. Most frequently, testing revealed multiple chemicals present at once, compounding possible health implications. Those findings are adding to a long-running drumbeat regarding the threat PFAS pose to the public & the environment. The chemicals have long been prized for their nonstick qualities, which made them a mainstay in a staggering array of household & industrial products.. Mounting concerns about their health implications, however, have drawn alarm from regulators, lawmakers & the public, with several linked to cancer & other severe risks.

Water contamination has become a particular source of concern. The chemicals have entered drinking water systems nationwide, leading to uproar across communities & mounting pressure on officials to take action. But the scale of the pollution in waterways is a stark reminder of just how aggressive the contamination has become. “The burden is placed on the government or members of the public to prove a substance is unsafe,” said Daniel Estrin, the Waterkeeper Alliance’s gen. counsel & advocacy dir. He blamed “many decades of industry-friendly policies practices” for the extent of the PFAS pollution detected by water monitors. Another issue of concern is the severity of the chemicals found in U.S. waters.

Of the 35 compounds detected during the analysis, the most persistent were PFOA & PFOS, the 2 most notorious members of the chemical family. They are linked to kidney & liver diseases, cancer, & other health problems & they cropped up at 70% of testing sites.,

Another controversial chemical, * HFPO-DA (GenX) also appeared. That compound has infamously contaminated water systems in No. Carolina. Testing revealed it in waterways in both Carolinas & Okla. In a sample from the Cape Fear River, it was detected at 25.8 ppt, well above EPA’s health advisory of 10 ppt. - ‘A wake-up call’? Speakers emphasized the significance of the date. Tues. marks 50 years of the nation’s key water protection law. * “The Clean Water Act was put into place to supposedly protect us from pollution like this,” said Jill Jedlicka, exec. dir. for the Buffalo Niagara Waterkeeper. But “a new generation of emerging contaminants” is testing the ability of regulators to protect the public. “PFAS are in our water, our air, our food, our blood,” she said. “Yet we still don’t have federal standards in place.”...https://www.eenews.net/articles/pfas-pollute-83-of-u-s-waterways/