Experts have raised the alarm after discovering PFAS in nearly 30 water samples taken from a river in Georgia.

What's happening?

As reported by the Savannah Morning News, experts working for the nonprofit Savannah Riverkeeper have tested nearly 30 soil and surface water samples taken from the Savannah River basin over the past two years. Worryingly, their results show that all of these samples were contaminated with PFAS, otherwise known as forever chemicals. 

These worrying results impact local communities that rely on the river basin for drinking water. Unfortunately, these results are not a surprise, as over 4,600 facilities are permitted by Georgia and South Carolina to release stormwater, wastewater, and other discharges into the nine watersheds that make up the river basin. 

The city of Savannah submitted a lawsuit in February against companies involved in the sale and manufacturing of PFAS-laden products in the region. However, the lawsuit has since been shuttled to the U.S District Court of South Carolina, where there are already over 10,000 other PFAS-related cases awaiting attention. 

Recent drawbacks of national drinking water regulations, along with the denial of any wrongdoing by over a third of the companies involved in the lawsuit, suggest that nothing will be done about the problem anytime soon.

"I think it's probably quite bad for us... but there's not much of a choice," said Tonya Bonitatibus, executive director of Savannah Riverkeeper, as per the Savannah Morning News.

Why is this important?

PFAS have entered the environment and drinking water following their use in manufacturing and other industrial processes. These chemicals are known as forever chemicals because they persist in the environment for a long time and are difficult to remove. 

Exposure to PFAS has been linked to a range of health issues, including increased cholesterol, liver damage, thyroid disease, and decreased immune response. While there are regulations in place to limit our exposure to two widely used and detected PFAS, known as PFOA and PFOS, many of the regulations against other types of PFAS have been recently rolled back by the EPA.

What's being done about PFAS contamination?

There are lots of different treatment options to help remove PFAS from contaminated water. The EPA outlines several of these, including granular activated carbon, anion exchange, reverse osmosis, and nanofiltration.

In addition to removing PFAS already in the environment, preventing more from accumulating is also a priority. There are a number of steps people can take to reduce PFAS at home, such as filtering tap water, switching to PFAS-free cookware like cast iron or stainless steel, and avoiding furniture and carpets that use stain-resistant coatings.

Do you worry about having toxic forever chemicals in your home? Majorly 😥 Sometimes 😟 Not really 😐 I don't know enough about them 🤷 Click your choice to see results and speak your mind.

Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.