Cancer-Causing PFAS Water Contamination in 98% of Tested Sites in U.S.: Report

Waterkeeper Alliance is calling for more stringent limits on PFAS in drinking water sources, following widespread detection of the “forever chemicals”.

According to a study conducted by a global clean water advocacy group, virtually every water source tested in the United States was contaminated with “forever chemicals,” which have been linked to cancer and other adverse health effects.

A new Phase II Report issued late last month by the Waterkeeper Alliance suggests water contamination problems are more widespread than previously thought, indicating that per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have contaminated 98% of U.S. waters that were tested.

PFAS include more than 9,000 manmade chemical compounds, which have been widely used in plastics and packaging due to their resistance to grease, oil and water, as well as in aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) used to fight petroleum fires. However, since they are known to build up in the human body and environment, they are commonly referred to as “forever chemicals.”

Exposure to PFAS and AFFF have been linked to numerous health issues, including kidney cancer, testicular cancer, ulcerative colitis, impacts on the body’s hormone system and other harmful effects. As a result, thousands of PFAS water contamination lawsuits have been filed against the chemicals’ manufacturers, including 3M, DuPont, Chemguard, Inc., Tyco Fire Products and others.

Additionally, firefighters and other military personnel have filed numerous AFFF lawsuits, alleging that their routine exposure to these chemicals in the firefighting foam caused them to develop certain cancers and other serious health conditions.

PFAS Water Contamination

The Water Alliance’s new Phase II report builds on findings from a previous Phase I report published in 2022, which found that 83% of U.S. waters tested at the time were contaminated with PFAS. However, more recent samples suggest the situation is worsening.

This second phase of the testing focused on sites that are downstream from wastewater treatment plants and fields where waste biosolids are used to fertilize fields after treatment. The tests were conducted across 19 states and monitored PFAS levels over a period of at least 20 days.

According to the findings, PFAS was detected in 98% of the waters sampled, and 95% of those samples contained elevated levels of the potentially toxic chemicals.

In a press release issued on June 26, Waterkeeper Alliance CEO, Marc Yaggi, said that PFAS contamination is turning into a national crisis, with the organization’s latest tests illustrating how widespread the problem is across the U.S.

As a result of its findings, the organization is urging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to continue pushing Biden-era policies to strengthen drinking water standards in order to protect the health of U.S. citizens. However, it is also warning that it appears the agency is preparing to do the opposite and side with polluters from various industries, despite being aware that PFAS contamination affects approximately 100 million U.S. citizens’ drinking water.

“Currently, there is little accountability for PFAS entering our environment and water through poorly regulated pathways. American communities are exposed daily, often unknowingly, and many face serious, disproportionate health risks. The tools to address this crisis exist, but the political will is lacking.”

-Marc Yaggi, CEO Waterkeeper Alliance

The group is calling on the EPA to establish and enforce more stringent PFAS limits in drinking water, prohibit the use of PFAS-contaminated biosolids for land application, prioritize funding for PFAS monitoring and treatment, and implement regulations for PFAS as a class of chemical compounds instead of addressing each chemical individually, which could take decades to review.

PFAS Exposure Lawsuits

There are currently more than 10,000 lawsuits involving PFAS exposure that have been filed by firefighters, residents who were exposed to contaminated water, and communities who are being forced to clean the chemicals out of their drinking water systems. These have been centralized into a federal multidistrict litigation (MDL) before U.S. District Judge Richard M. Gergel in the District of South Carolina for pretrial proceedings.

The lawsuits accuse the chemical and safety equipment manufacturers of failing to warn the public about the long-term health risks posed by PFAS exposure, pointing to mounting evidence, like in this most recent study.

As part of coordinated pretrial proceedings, a group of bellwether cases are currently being prepared for trial, to evaluate how juries may respond to the evidence. The first trial is scheduled to begin in October 2025, and will focus on claims involving individuals who developed cancer after drinking PFAS-contaminated water near military bases and firefighting training facilities.

While the outcomes of these early trials won’t be binding on other cases, they are expected to influence future settlement negotiations and provide insight into potential PFAS water contamination lawsuit payout values.