PFAS Central: sharing notable news, scientific papers & events
Although useful, PFAS or highly fluorinated chemicals are associated with serious health harm and can remain in the environment forever.
Latest News
Your PFAS questions answered by Professor Rainer Lohmann
11 Jul 2025 | Leo Bear-McGuinness speaking with Rainer Lohmann, PhD
“So the [EPA] is saying ‘if you can detect PFAS in your drinking water, then that level is too high.’”
PFAS were originally used to contain nuclear chemicals, new book finds
11 Jul 2025 | Wisconsin Public Radio
Investigative journalist uncovers how PFAS, originally a product of the Manhattan Project, became ubiquitous in consumer products.
Toxic PFAS above proposed safety limits in almost all English waters tested
11 Jul 2025 | The Guardian
Out of 117 water bodies tested by the Environment Agency for multiple types of Pfas, 110 would fail the safety standard, according to analysis by Wildlife and Countryside Link and the Rivers Trust.
EU ministers get their blood tested for forever chemicals
10 Jul 2025 | Politico
European environment ministers underwent blood testing for ‘forever chemicals’ on Thursday in a publicity exercise to highlight the alarming reach of the toxic substances.
PFAS settlement secures $4.8M for Tucson's water safety
10 Jul 2025 | KVOA
The City of Tucson has received an initial $4.8 million payment from a national legal settlement aimed at addressing the impacts of PFAS products used as Aqueous Film Forming Foam.
Latest Science
Characterization and health risk assessment of chemical and microbial pollutants in particulate matter from dust prone regions
14 Jul 2025 | Scientific Reports
Researchers in Sharjah, UAE, detected trace levels of PFAS in desert dust, showing that wind-blown sand can spread these persistent pollutants through the air and spotlighting inhalation as an overlooked exposure route that arid-city air-quality programs need to monitor.
PFAS in pelagic Sargassum: A growing concern for the Mexican Caribbean coastline
14 Jul 2025 | J. Hazard. Mater.
Scientists report the first evidence that the vast, floating seaweed Sargassum, is able to uptake and transport PFAS across vast distances, making the blooms both an expensive pollution vector and a potential tool for cleaning contaminated seawater.
Smoldering treatment of PFAS: Investigation of mass balance and volumetric scale up for field implementatio
8 Jul 2025 | ACS Omega
Engineers have conducted a proof-of-concept study to show that a self-sustaining “smoldering” treatment, enhanced with calcium oxide, can scale from lab columns to 10 m³ soil piles and destroy >99.9 % of PFAS while trapping the released fluorine as benign calcium fluoride, pointing to an energy-efficient, potentially field-ready solution for cleaning contaminated fire-training sites.
Levels of serum per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances and association with dyslipidemia in the Korean population
7 Jul 2025 | Ecotoxicol Environ Saf
A large national study of nearly 3,000 Korean adults found widespread PFAS exposure and showed that higher serum concentrations of several compounds, especially PFOA, PFHxS, PFNA and PFDeA, were consistently associated with elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and total cholesterol, implying potential cardiovascular risk and reinforcing the need for stricter regulation.
Association between prenatal exposure to per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances and blood pressure among preschool-aged children: The moderating effect of child-age and the mediating effect of inflammatory cytokine
5 Jul 2025 | Ecotoxicol Environ Saf
Tracking 215 mother-child pairs in China, researchers found that prenatal exposure to common PFAS chemicals was associated with higher diastolic blood pressure in preschoolers, and that inflammatory signals in cord blood partly explained the effect, pointing to a subtle early-life pathway by which PFAS may increase the likelihood of later heart-disease risk.
Latest Policy
Trump administration yanks $15m in research into PFAS on US farms: ‘not just stupid, it’s evil’
11 Jul 2025
The Trump administration has killed nearly $15m in research into PFAS contamination of US farmland, bringing to a close studies that public health advocates say are essential for understanding a worrying source of widespread food contamination.
‘Forever chemicals’ in school uniforms could be banned under proposed law
3 Jul 2025
Amendments to children’s wellbeing and schools bill call for ban on PFAS and synthetic fibres over health concerns.
Yaw, Miller to Introduce Bill Limiting Use of PFAS in Firefighting Foam
30 Jun 2025
State Senators Gene Yaw (R) and Nick Miller (D) announced plans today to introduce bipartisan legislation that would limit the manufacture, sale, distribution and use of firefighting foam containing PFAS beginning in 2026.
Michigan AG settles lawsuit with Domtar over PFAS contamination in St. Clair County
25 Jun 2025
The Michigan Office of Attorney General has reached a settlement agreement with Domtar Industries over the release of PFAS in its paper manufacturing process.
Wisconsin Supreme Court rules spills law applies to PFAS
24 Jun 2025
In a 5-2 ruling on Tuesday, the Wisconsin Supreme Court affirmed the Department of Natural Resources’ authority to regulate polluters who produce hazardous substances such as PFAS through the state’s toxic spills law.
Opportunities
PFAS – Challenges and Scientific Perspectives in Human Health Risk Assessment
Event: 8 Oct 2025
This international conference brings together national and international scientists and risk assessors to exchange current scientific knowledge on PFAS and to discuss challenges and advances in human health risk assessment.
SETAC North America 46th Annual Meeting - Call for Abstracts
Event: 16 Nov 2025
DATES: 16–20 November 2025 LOCATION: Portland, Oregon Abstract submissions are free until 4 June. Late-breaking science abstracts will be accepted from 9 July–20 August for a $50 rush fee.
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