Nearly Half of People in the U.S. Have Toxic PFAS in Their Drinking Water

By Andrea Thompson | Scientific American | March 28, 2025

Read the full article by Andrea Thompson (Scientific American)

"New data recently released by the Environmental Protection Agency indicate that more than 158 million people across the U.S. have drinking water contaminated by toxic “forever chemicals,” scientifically known as perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).

“Drinking water is a major source of PFAS exposure. The sheer number of contaminated sites shows that these chemicals are likely present in most of the U.S. water supply,” said David Andrews, deputy director of investigations and a senior scientist at the Environmental Working Group (EWG), a nonprofit advocacy organization, in a recent press release.

What Are PFAS?

There are more than 9,000 known PFAS compounds, and more than 600 of them are used in a wide range of common products, from cookware to cosmetics to pesticides."