PFAS Water Contamination Map Shows States With Highest ‘Forever Chemicals’

Testing by consumer watchdog reveals which states have the highest levels of cancer-causing PFAS chemicals from AFFF runoff and industrial dumping.

As thousands of individuals living in communities throughout the United States move forward with PFAS water contamination lawsuits, alleging that exposure to toxic chemicals in their tap water led to the development of kidney cancer, testicular cancer, ulcerative colitis and other injuries, a prominent watchdog has released a new map confirming the areas in the U.S. that contain the worst problems.

For decades, chemical companies and the U.S. military have used toxic substances in firefighting foam, often dumping them into the environment without adequate safeguards. Today, those decisions have left millions of Americans unknowingly exposed to harmful contaminants in their drinking water.

The compounds at the center of this crisis are per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a group of man-made chemicals often referred to as “forever chemicals” because they do not break down in the environment or the human body.

Since the 1950s, PFAS have been widely used in aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) at military bases, airports and fire training facilities, as well as in industrial processes at chemical plants operated by 3M, DuPont, Chemours and others. These chemicals were regularly discharged directly into soil, rivers and stormwater systems, eventually seeping into underground aquifers and public water supplies.

According to the Environmental Working Group (EWG), PFAS contamination has now been confirmed in thousands of communities across all 50 states, often near former military installations or manufacturing hubs.

Although the presence of PFAS in drinking water is invisible, the health consequences are increasingly evident. Long-term exposure to these chemicals has been linked by federal health agencies to serious conditions such as:

• Testicular cancer
• Kidney cancer
• Liver cancer
• Thyroid disease (hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism)
• Ulcerative colitis

In response to the public health fallout, more than 10,000 AFFF lawsuits have been filed against the chemical manufacturers responsible for decades of PFAS pollution, each raising similar allegations that inadequate warnings and information has been provided about the long-term health risks associated with exposure, and the risk of the chemicals contaminating local water supplies.

The AFFF litigation includes two main types of claims: lawsuits from individuals exposed to PFAS-contaminated drinking water near military bases, airports and industrial sites, and AFFF exposure lawsuits filed by firefighters, military personnel and airport workers who came into direct contact with the firefighting foam.

All federal claims have been consolidated into a multidistrict litigation (MDL) in the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina, where Judge Richard M. Gergel is overseeing coordinated discovery and bellwether trials as settlement discussions for individual injury claims continue to move forward.

How AFFF and Industry Dumping Contaminated Water

For decades, PFAS chemicals used in firefighting foam and industrial manufacturing were routinely discharged into the environment, leaving behind a toxic legacy that continues to contaminate drinking water today.

At military airfields, fire academies and civilian airports, AFFF was sprayed during fuel fire training exercises and emergencies. The foam seeped into the soil and leached into the groundwater, or was washed into surface water without any containment.

According to data compiled by the EWG, more than 720 U.S. military sites are known or suspected to have discharged PFAS, primarily through routine AFFF use during training and emergency response. At 601 of these locations, testing has already confirmed groundwater or drinking water contamination.

However, firefighting foam isn’t the only source of PFAS entering the water supply. The EWG now reports that more than 41,000 industrial PFAS dumping sites have been identified across the U.S., where facilities are known or suspected to have manufactured, used or released PFAS into the environment.

These sites were identified using federal data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Chemical Data Reporting Rule, Enforcement and Compliance History Online (ECHO) database, and FAA records, as well as state surveys. Facilities include:

• Industrial operations involving textiles, paper coating, electroplating, petroleum refining and more
• Airports previously required to use AFFF
• Plastics, chemical and electronics manufacturing plants
• Landfills and sewage treatment plants

States With Highest PFAS Drinking Water Contamination

Recent testing data confirms that many U.S. water systems, especially those near military installations, airports and chemical manufacturing plants, have dangerously high PFAS levels.

According to the EPA, nearly 3,000 public water systems have reported PFAS detections through routine testing. The EWG has further identified 7,457 confirmed PFAS contamination sites across all 50 states and U.S. territories, with detections reported in over 8,800 unique water sampling locations nationwide.

Below are the highest PFAS levels reported in eight selected states, based on EWG’s public drinking water system data as of August 2025:

While these locations represent some of the highest confirmed PFAS readings to date, emerging research indicates they may only scratch the surface, with tens of thousands of additional sites likely contaminated, but not yet tested or publicly identified.

Study Identifies 57,000 Presumptive PFAS Hotspots

That means the PFAS drinking water contamination issue may be much more widespread than currently projected. A 2023 study published in Environmental Science & Technology Letters by researchers from the American Chemical Society (ACS) identified more than 57,000 presumptive PFAS contamination sites across the U.S., far beyond the number currently confirmed by testing.

These locations were not flagged through direct sampling, but by analyzing industrial and environmental data that shows where PFAS compounds were known to be manufactured, used, stored or discharged.

Presumptive contamination hotspots include:

• Airports and military bases where firefighting foam was used
• Chemical manufacturing and industrial plants
• Wastewater treatment facilities and landfills

The findings suggest that thousands of communities may still be at risk of exposure, even if their water systems have not yet tested above federal thresholds or been added to official contamination lists.

What PFAS Exposure Does to the Body

PFAS chemicals bind to proteins in the blood and accumulate in organs over time. They interfere with hormonal function, suppress immune response, and disrupt liver metabolism.

Long-term ingestion, even at low levels, can damage multiple systems in the body and trigger chronic diseases that take years to emerge.

According to scientific evidence outlined in a growing number of AFFF and PFAS groundwater contamination lawsuits, health experts have linked routine ingestion and exposure to PFAS chemicals to:

• Testicular Cancer
• Kidney Cancer
• Liver Cancer
• Thyroid Cancer
• Thyroid Dysfunction (Hypo/Hyperthyroidism)
• Ulcerative Colitis

Communities with contaminated water sources often report clusters of these conditions, yet many residents are unaware they’ve been exposed until symptoms surface.

PFAS Cancer Lawsuits Seek Accountability

Individuals diagnosed with these serious health conditions after long-term exposure to PFAS-contaminated water are now filing lawsuits against the companies that manufactured or used the chemicals.

These lawsuits aim to recover compensation for medical expenses, lost income, and the pain caused by cancers or chronic diseases tied to contaminated drinking water.

If you or a loved one were exposed to AFFF firefighting foam or PFAS-contaminated water and developed cancer or other serious illnesses, you may be entitled to compensation. There may still be time to file a claim.