EPA has known about presence and danger of PFAS in drinking water for almost two decades, documents show

By Rebecca Barglowski | Prism | December 18, 2024

Read the full article by Rebecca Barglowski (Prism)

"Rising awareness about “forever chemicals” in drinking water and the serious health risks they pose finally resulted in action last April when the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) passed new regulations for water suppliers across the country.

But the agency responsible for setting the standards of safe drinking water has known about the presence of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and their potential dangers for almost two decades, according to a Prism analysis of public documents. In the years following the EPA’s decision not to regulate PFAS in drinking water, suppliers across the country have been able to knowingly serve water contaminated with the cancer-causing chemicals while still passing federal standards on water safety. A Prism analysis of water quality reports of both New Jersey’s Middlesex Water Company and Raritan Basin Water Supply System shows how this dynamic played out in one area of the country.

Over the course of 2023, Middlesex served 14 billion gallons of water. The Raritan Basin Water Supply System serves more than 126 million gallons of water to 56 New Jersey communities on a daily basis. The true picture of the dangers posed comes fully into focus only when we understand just how much, and for how long, the public has been served contaminated water without legal protection."