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Sophie Benson
Widely used since the 1940s, PFAS’ are valued for their ability to repel grease and water, ideal for non-stick, oil-resistant, and waterproof products. They’re certainly compelling properties but their impact is global, and acute.
Due to their various useful properties forever chemicals are used in, and applied to, an array of everyday products including paper food packaging, cosmetics, dental floss, carpets, stain-guards, waterproof clothing, electronics, paints, pesticides, pharmaceuticals, and outdoor furniture. They’re extremely hard to avoid through consumer choices alone. For instance, nearly 75% of water-resistant products contain toxic PFAS, while a peer-reviewed study found that over half of 231 makeup and personal care samples including nail polish, concealer, and lip balm contained them.
People can be exposed to PFAs by working in occupations which are reliant on them, eating food or drinking water which is contaminated by them, breathing contaminated air, or simply using products made from, or packaged in, materials containing them. Because they are not broken down or excreted, they accumulate within the body with nowhere to go. PFAs have been found in breast milk, blood, and umbilical cords.
In 2021, the EPA identified more than 120,000 locations where people may be exposed to forever chemicals, while a 2020 study suggested over 57,000 sites across US cities which are “very likely” contaminated with them. In Italy over 350,000 residents of the Veneto region were estimated to have been exposed through tap water, while PFAS from India are carried outside the border with the monsoon and deposited via snowfall in western China.
PFAs, particularly those with long carbon chains like PFOA and PFOS, have been linked to immune system issues, decreased fertility, developmental delays in children, interference with hormones, increased cholesterol levels, and increased risk of certain cancers, with kidney, prostate, and testicular cancers being of high concern. PFOA has a half-life of 92 years in the environment and two to eight years in the human body.
In 2021, the EPA announced a strategic roadmap to address PFAS which included reporting requirements, usage reviews, and toxicity assessments. In 2022, the state of California announced a law that will prohibit the manufacture, sale or distribution of new textiles and apparel products containing PFAS from January 2025. The Netherlands, Germany, Norway, Denmark and Sweden are preparing a restriction proposal to be submitted to the ECHA in January 2023, and in 2022 the ECHA submitted a restriction proposal for their use in firefighting foams.
In 2014, family-owned outdoor footwear brand Keen discovered its shoes were coated with PFAS and decided to act. An audit of every single shoe to eliminate them from unnecessary elements and styles like laces, threads, non-waterproof shoes, and sandals resulted in an immediate 70% reduction. The final 30% required a PFAS-free replacement. The company hired a full-time restricted substances expert who could help both the brand and its factories with the transition.
The process of going PFAS-free took four years and approximately 10,000 hours of work, but as a result Keen estimates it has saved over 150 tonnes of forever chemicals from being introduced into the environment.
