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Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) | State Legislation and Federal Action [1]

['Mindy Bridges', 'Shelly Oren', 'Melanie Horton', 'Lesley Kennedy']

Date: 2022-11

Introduction

Per- and poly-fluoroalkyls, known more commonly as PFAS, are a group of human-made chemicals not found naturally in the environment that have emerged as an issue of increasing interest to state legislatures and the federal government within the last decade. The PFAS group includes chemicals such as perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS), GenX and more than 7,800 others.

PFAS are used in a wide range of products used daily—from cookware to rain jackets to pizza boxes- because they contain many properties such as the ability to repel dirt, water and grease. In fact, since their introduction in the 1940s, the chemicals have been used in a variety of industries and consumer goods, such as carpeting, paper packaging, nonstick and weather-resistant coatings, rubber and plastics. As such, a majority of people have been exposed to PFAS at some point in their life, and while PFOA and PFOS are no longer manufactured in the United States, these chemicals are still produced internationally and imported into the country in consumer products.

PFAS chemicals are extremely stable and persistent in the environment and in the human body, meaning they do not break down and can accumulate over time—thus being given the moniker of “forever chemicals.” These chemicals are often found in soil and water near sites where they are manufactured, used or discarded. The chemical chains can travel long distances, move through the soil, seep into groundwater, or be carried through the air, making them especially difficult to contain.

Studies have linked the chemicals to adverse health effects such as low infant birth weights, asthma, cancer and thyroid hormone disruptions. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), studies indicate that PFOA and PFOS can impact reproductive and developmental systems, liver and kidney function and cause immunological effects in laboratory animals. The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry’s (ASTSDR) 2018 toxicological profile of PFAS also indicates that high levels of PFAS in the blood may decrease how well the body responds to vaccines. Given the negative public health impacts, it is disparaging to say that 95% all of the people tested since 1999 via the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey performed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) were found to have PFAS in their bodies—thus indicating widespread exposure to PFAS within the United States.

Given the breadth and negative impacts of these chemicals, state legislatures and the federal government are working to take actions to mitigate the public health impacts and clean up the environmental degradation the production and use of these chemicals have caused.

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[1] Url: https://www.ncsl.org/research/environment-and-natural-resources/per-and-polyfluoroalkyl-substances-pfas-state-laws.aspx

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