PFAS “Forever Chemicals”
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a growing list of 11,000+ chemicals found in products like nonstick pans, food packaging, and firefighting foam used on military bases and at commercial airports. PFAS are known as a legacy chemical, meaning they don’t easily break down, and can persist in our bodies and in the environment for generations. As a result of their pervasiveness, more than 95 percent of the U.S. population has PFAS in their bodies, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Worse, there is evidence that exposure to PFAS can lead to adverse human health effects on your immune system, liver, thyroid, birth defects and could cause cancer. The full extent of the risks and exposure levels from PFAS is still being studied.
Background on PFAS in the Upper Potomac
In 2019, Upper Potomac Riverkeeper Brent Walls, was alerted to a public drinking water system in Martinsburg, WV that had to be shut down due to the elevated levels of PFAS that were greater than the EPA drinking water guidance of 70 ppt. The source of the PFAS was the Martinsburg Air National Guard 167th Airlift Wing. For decades the military base used aqueous film forming foam or AFFF for fire fighting training exercises. PFAS from AFFF use seeped into the ground and contaminated a natural spring used by the water treatment plant for drinking water.
Brent set out on a mission to measure the impact to local streams by sampling for PFAS. The results showed levels ranging from 200 to 1200 ppt total PFAS in three spring fed streams connected to the Opequon Creek. From this point, Brent started asking questions. If PFAS is in the streams, is it in the fish? That question led Brent to USGS fisheries biologists to see if they had any data on PFAS levels in fish in the Opequon creek. USGS did not, but they did have recent results from small mouth bass testing in the Antietam Creek. The levels of PFAS in the blood plasma of the small mouth bass tested ranged from 250,000 to 560,000 ppt. Why is PFAS so high in small mouth bass in the Antietam Creek?
Addressing the Issue
Our work as clean water advocates starts with asking questions. What is PFAS? What are the sources? How can we stop PFAS pollution?
Through research and coordination with many experts on PFAS, Brent created a PFAS 101 presentation that has been used countless times when educating communities. Continuously refining his presentation as the research changed over the years, it became apparent that PFAS pollution is a watershed-wide issue, in fact it is a worldwide issue. With Brent’s leadership, PRKN has become the lead advocating organization on PFAS pollution through monitoring and legislative advancement.
The goal of our PFAS Campaign is to Stop PFAS at the Source, provide notice to the public and Require PFAS Polluters to Clean Up Their Mess. The Antietam Creek has been on the Maryland Impaired Waters list for bacteria for the past 2 decades. In 2022, our bacteria monitoring identified a stream in the Antietam Creek with consistently high levels of bacteria. These excessive levels prompted a more focused monitoring project for Marsh Run, a tributary of the Antietam Creek.
For more information on PFAS explore the resources below:
Thank you to all of our PFAS Partners who help support our program with expertise and community engagement!
• Johns Hopkins School of Public Health
• Patuxent Riverkeeper
• South County Environmental Justice Coalition
• University of Mary Washington
• West Virginia River Coalition
