It is more crucial than ever that the water we drink is healthy and clean enough for human and animal consumption. With the growing rate of microplastics found in everything from ground water to urban water supplies, and the potential impact these pollutants may have on the body for future generations, regulation is paramount. That’s why here at Chemwatch we are looking forward to new regulation for drinking water in the United States, which tackles the ever growing exposure of PFAS in drinking water.
PFAS stands for Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances, which are a large group of chemicals used in plastics in consumer products, like cookware, packaging, clothes and more. The problem with PFAS lies in the fact that it cannot break down easily, which is good for products—where the need for chemical resistance to water, oil, grease and heat is great—but not for the environment and our bodies. PFAS molecules have carbon-fluorine bonds that are very strong and not easily degradable… in fact, they have a half-life of 7 years in the body. PFAS, like other plastics, are known as one of the ‘forever chemicals’, posing multiple health risks that have become more apparent in recent years, which we will discuss.
While it is difficult to calculate the amount of deaths attributable to PFAS exposure alone, there is one such case in Veneto, Italy, where residents that did drink PFAS contaminated drinking water were shown to have an increased likelihood of death from cardiovascular disease. Researchers found that Veneto’s drinking water was contaminated by a local PFAS production plant, and between 1985 and 2018 there were about 4,000 deaths likely to have been the result of this contamination.
While our understanding of PFAS and its effects on the body are ever growing, what we know about the health effects of PFAS are:
And the side effects don’t end there. Simply put, what we know about PFAS is that these health disrupting molecules shouldn’t be anywhere near our water supply.
Only very recently have governments and groups globally cut down on PFAS in drinking water, as well as plastics in general. But the future outlook is more optimistic. Not only did the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulate PFAS in drinking water, Australia banned some prominent types of PFAS from the 1st of July, 2025. Australia has had anti PFAS policies for at least 6 years and has been at the forefront of PFAS regulation. There are lots of other countries and regions notable for their PFAS regulation, like France, Japan, and the European Union.
The EPA predicts that over the coming years, this ruling will prevent PFAS exposure to “approximately 100 million people, prevent thousands of deaths, and reduce tens of thousands of serious PFAS-attributable illnesses.” The EPA has also funded $1 billion to help the country implement PFAS testing and treatment to public water systems and help manage private wells also.
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