White River advocate Jill Hoffmann and stormwater engineer Tim Stottlemyer seek to raise awareness about rainwater-caused sources of pollution in the river. Indianapolis Star
A family ofsynthetic chemicals, which for decades have been found in everything from food packaging to stain-resistant carpetsand are associated with a list of health problems, have now been found in Indianapolis’ drinking water, a report says.
The long-lasting “forever chemicals” also known as PFAS showed up in Indianapolis tap water at a level of 15 parts per trillion,according to a study bythe Environmental Working Group, a national research and advocacy organization.
This level is much lower than the limit set by the Environmental Protection Agency, which is 70 parts per trillion, but higher than standards set by researchers and various state governments.
So what does this all mean for our health? The answer is still taking shape, given that the thousands of chemicals under this umbrella are considered emerging contaminants and because of a lack of consensus about how much exposure people can tolerate.
Here is what we know about PFAS, in terms of their presence in Indianapolis’ water, how they became a part of everyday life, their potential health effects and what can been done to limit our exposure to them.
PFAS in Indianapolis
Recommended and enforced PFAS limits across the country run the gamut.
California, for instance, requires notice for any drinking water with more than 5.1 to 6.5 parts per trillion of the two most-studied types of PFAS substances, and a Michigan state committee just approved standards ranging from 8 to 16 parts per trillion for the same chemicals.
The Environmental Working Group and a recent Harvard study argue these standards are still too high. Both suggest the limit should be closer to one part per trillion. This is roughly equivalent to one droplet within an Olympic swimming pool.
Of the cities and counties compared nationwide in the EWG report, Indianapolis’ rate of 15 parts per trillionwas about average — nearby cities such as Louisville and Columbus, Ohio, showed higher levels of PFAS contamination.
Even so, said EWG senior scientist David Andrews, Indianapolis’ water supply showed PFAS levels 15 times higher than the organization’s proposed limit.
“This is information that really should have been made public years ago,” Andrews said. “Studies of these chemicals have indicated … just an incredible array of health effects.”
But this wasn’t the first time the city’s water systems had been screened for PFAS. Indianapolis-area water systems were monitored from 2013 to 2015 as part of an EPA program, and no PFAS were detected, said a spokesperson from the Indiana Department of Environmental Management.
However, the EWG report sampled the water between May and December last year. The organization also says it tested for a wider array of chemicals than the EPA program did, and required reporting at a lower level of compounds than the EPA required.
Currently, there’s no requirement for testing for PFAS, but if there were IDEM would be agency with authority over that testing, an agency spokesperson said.
What are PFAS chemicals?
The syntheticchemicals were first used in manufacturing in the 1940s and have reached ubiquity in recent decades.
Two of these chemicals, known as PFOS and PFOA, were famously used to make Scotchguard and the nonstick coating on Teflon cookware, sparking generations of products using similar materials. This compound has since been phased out.
Nevertheless, the materials that contain PFAS are widespread, found in products ranging from microwave popcorn bags to cleaning supplies.
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Because it takes so long for PFAS chemicals to break down, however, people are exposed to them in even more ways. The chemicals build up in the ground, float in the air and run through rivers.
“It comes from multiple sources,” said Linda Lee, an agronomy professor at Purdue University with years of experience researching PFAS. “And that’s part of the challenge.”
As many as 110 million Americans could be drinking from PFAS-contaminated water sources, according to estimates from the EWG, which says about 99% of Americans have the chemicals in their bloodstreams.
A difficulty in addressing this issue, Lee said, is the sparsity of knowledge about the substances themselves.
“There’s a lot of arguing about how toxic they are, what should the levels be?” Lee said. “People have no idea how many things they take for granted that they have because of these compounds … but nobody realized how ‘forever’ they are.”
Health concerns
As PFAS chemicals are considered an emerging contaminant, not much is yet known about their exact toll on the body. However, they have been associated with a litany of health problems, including complications to the immune system, highercholesterol levels, hormonal issues and cancer.
PFAS chemicals take years to break down from the environment and the body, earning them the moniker of “forever chemicals.”
That means that even tiny amounts can over time build up in the blood to levels much higher than in drinking water, said Andrews, from the EWG.
“These chemicals are found in nearly every water supply … I think it highlights that it’s nearly impossible if not impossible to avoid exposure to some of these chemicals,” he said. “They’ve become unavoidable.”
Alexis Temkin, EWG toxicologist and author of a recent study that tested 26 PFAS chemicals and found they display characteristics of carcinogens, said there’s not enough data on these substances to know their exact connection to disease.
However, she said, the results are still cause for concern.
“Even though these 26 chemicals have the characteristics of carcinogens,” Temkin said, “it doesn’t necessarily mean that they cause cancer. It does mean that it’s important to limit exposure.”
State actions
Two bills addressing PFAS contaminants were introduced in the legislature this year. One would have required the state to establish maximum contaminant levels for PFAS substances in public water, but it died in committee without being heard.
The other bill, which aims to limit the substance’suse in firefighting foam passed through the legislature with little to no friction.
This foam is especially useful for fires from flammable liquids such as fuels and would be difficult to stop using entirely. But HB 1189, authored by Rep. Peggy Mayfield, attempts to reduce its use in training and in testing.
Limiting the use of this foam can reduce the amount of chemicals that leech into the ground or water. It’s a good first step toward addressing what Mayfield considers a public safety issue.
“Right now, in Indiana there are no controls over the use of PFAS,” Mayfield said. “While some states have been working toward a total ban, I don’t think that we were quite ready as a state.”
The bill passed through the legislature unanimously with bipartisan support. On Wednesday, it was signed into law by Gov. Eric Holcomb.
What you can do
It may be next to impossible to limit exposure to PFAS chemicals, particularly if they’re in drinking water. However, Temkin said, there are a few measures that might reduce PFAS exposure.
Avoiding packaging such as sandwich wrappers, grease-resistant food containers and other fast-food or processed food packaging could help, Temkin said. Stain-resistant carpets, fabrics or furniture are also typically made with PFAS chemicals, so opting out of those products may also be a good idea.
For longer-term solutions addressing stores of PFAS substances in soil and water, Lee, the Purdue professor, said she focuses on advocating for their removal from manufacturing altogether.
“I think we should ban them from packaging and there is a move in that direction,” Lee said. “Because these chem clearly do not break down in the environment … we need to phase these out of our products.”
Contact IndyStar reporter London Gibson at 317-419-1912 or lbgibson@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @londongibson.
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IndyStar’s environmental reporting project is made possible through the generous support of the nonprofit Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust.
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