> In recent days, whistle-blowers have alleged in the Intercept that the E.P.A. office in charge of reviewing toxic chemicals tampered with the assessments of dozens of chemicals to make them appear safer. [1]<p>> E.P.A. scientists evaluating new chemicals “are the last line of defense between harmful — even deadly — chemicals and their introduction into U.S. commerce, and this line of defense is struggling to maintain its integrity,” the whistle-blowers said in their disclosure, which was released by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, a Maryland-based nonprofit group.<p>[1]: <a href="https://theintercept.com/2021/07/02/epa-chemical-safety-corruption-whistleblowers/" rel="nofollow">https://theintercept.com/2021/07/02/epa-chemical-safety-corr...</a>
I'm not nearly as worried about fracking when it comes to PFAS/PFOAs as I am about airports. It is well documented, that airports (especially military ones) have used PFAS/PFOAs as firefighting agents for years and years. If you live near an airport, you should not be drinking groundwater. If you absolutely must, then get it tested!
Question: How is a "forever chemical" different from any other chemical?<p>Google search:<p>> "PFAS are commonly referred to as “forever chemicals”"<p>Google search:<p>> PFAS = Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances<p>Wikipedia entry, 'environmental concerns' section:<p>> In 2009, PFASs were listed as persistent organic pollutants (POPs) under the Stockholm Convention [1], due to their ubiquitous, persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic nature.<p>> The nickname was derived by combining the two dominant attributes of this class of chemicals:<p>> 1) PFAS chemicals are characterized by a carbon-fluorine (C-F) backbone (the "F-C" in "Forever Chemicals"); and<p>> 2) the carbon fluorine bond is one of the strongest bonds in organic chemistry, which gives these chemicals an extremely long environmental half-life<p>Wikipedia entry, Fluorine, PFAS mention:<p>> Dwell time in the body varies greatly by species, with half-lives of days in rodents, and years in humans.<p>[1] <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockholm_Convention_on_Persistent_Organic_Pollutants" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockholm_Convention_on_Persis...</a>
Maybe microbes will evolve to get better at reductive defluorination. Microbes that can use chlorinated solvents as terminal electron acceptors are pretty widespread. <a href="https://sci-hub.se/10.1021/acs.est.0c04483" rel="nofollow">https://sci-hub.se/10.1021/acs.est.0c04483</a>