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posted by takyon on Monday January 27 2020, @11:24PM   Printer-friendly
from the bottoms-up dept.

U.S. drinking water widely contaminated with 'forever chemicals': environment watchdog

The contamination of U.S. drinking water with man-made "forever chemicals" is far worse than previously estimated with some of the highest levels found in Miami, Philadelphia and New Orleans, said a report on Wednesday by an environmental watchdog group.

The chemicals, resistant to breaking down in the environment, are known as perfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. Some have been linked to cancers, liver damage, low birth weight and other health problems.

The findings here by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) show the group's previous estimate in 2018, based on unpublished U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) data, that 110 million Americans may be contaminated with PFAS, could be far too low.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances


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  • (Score: 2) by Gaaark on Monday January 27 2020, @11:32PM

    by Gaaark (41) on Monday January 27 2020, @11:32PM (#949657) Journal

    Just stop drinking water/fluids.

    Sooooooo simple.

    --
    --- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday January 27 2020, @11:47PM (2 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday January 27 2020, @11:47PM (#949669)

    Perfluoroalkyls kill coronavirus.

    • (Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @12:24AM (1 child)

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @12:24AM (#949693)

      Nope. Only the host.

      • (Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday January 29 2020, @12:38AM

        by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday January 29 2020, @12:38AM (#950349)

        Which then kills the virus.

  • (Score: 3, Insightful) by PartTimeZombie on Tuesday January 28 2020, @12:36AM (2 children)

    by PartTimeZombie (4827) on Tuesday January 28 2020, @12:36AM (#949701)

    The EPA will take care of this.

    Oh, wait. Shit.

    • (Score: 4, Insightful) by MostCynical on Tuesday January 28 2020, @01:47AM (1 child)

      by MostCynical (2589) on Tuesday January 28 2020, @01:47AM (#949733) Journal

      No, the "market" will sort it out.

      It'll be like Detroit (with environmental, rather than economic, refugees), only without the possibility of subsistence farming..

      --
      "I guess once you start doubting, there's no end to it." -Batou, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @11:32AM

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @11:32AM (#950016)

        Maybe Obama can come gingerly sip a glass of water to assure us all?

  • (Score: 5, Funny) by istartedi on Tuesday January 28 2020, @12:58AM (1 child)

    by istartedi (123) on Tuesday January 28 2020, @12:58AM (#949711) Journal

    ...Born and raised, by the smokestack is where I spent most of my days. When a couple of guys who were up to no good, started making products in my neighborhood. I got a little colitis and my Mom got scared. She said "You're moving with your auntie and uncle in Bel Air".

    --
    Appended to the end of comments you post. Max: 120 chars.
    • (Score: 1, Redundant) by c0lo on Tuesday January 28 2020, @05:06AM

      by c0lo (156) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday January 28 2020, @05:06AM (#949891) Journal

      +5 - ummm...

      Searched for the lyrics and, before reading them, I couldn't believe that stupid could come with them. Turned out he didn't!

      Kudos.

      --
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
  • (Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @01:03AM (9 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @01:03AM (#949714)

    All have large negro populations and therefore high drug usage. Are these chemicals byproducts of crack production?

    • (Score: 5, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @02:41AM (8 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @02:41AM (#949774)

      He began his 2016 presidential campaign with a speech disparaging Mexican immigrants as criminals and “rapists.”

      He uses the gang MS-13 to disparage all immigrants. Among many other statements, he has suggested that Obama’s protection of the Dreamers — otherwise law-abiding immigrants who were brought to the United States illegally as children — contributed to the spread of MS-13.

      In December 2015, Trump called for a “a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States,” including refusing to readmit Muslim-American citizens who were outside of the country at the time.

      Trump said a federal judge hearing a case about Trump University was biased because of the judge’s Mexican heritage.

      In June 2017, Trump said 15,000 recent immigrants from Haiti “all have AIDS” and that 40,000 Nigerians, once seeing the United States, would never “go back to their huts” in Africa.

      At the White House on Jan. 11, Trump vulgarly called for less immigration from Haiti and Africa and more from Norway.

      Trump regularly demonized dark-skinned immigrants before the 2018 midterm elections, and his campaign produced an ad — about a caravan of migrants traveling through Mexico — that was so racist even Fox News declined to air it. He claimed that the same caravan included “criminals and unknown Middle Easterners.”

      During a White House meeting in 2018, he referred to some undocumented immigrants as “animals” and later said they would “pour into and infest our country.” He also claimed, without evidence, that migrants were bringing diseases into the country.
      Obama As Unqualified, Lazy and Un-American

              An 'extremely credible source' has called my office and told me that @BarackObama's birth certificate is a fraud.
              — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 6, 2012

      He spent years suggesting that the nation’s first black president was born not in the United States but in Kenya, a lie that Trump still has not acknowledged as such.

      Trump called Obama (who was editor in chief of the Harvard Law Review) “a terrible student, terrible.”

              Obama has admitted that he spends his mornings watching @ESPN. Then he plays golf, fundraises & grants amnesty to illegals.
              — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 16, 2014

      Trump frequently claimed that Obama did not work hard as president.

      Trump falsely claimed that President Obama “issued a statement for Kwanzaa but failed to issue one for Christmas.”
      Urban America As a Hellscape

      He often casts heavily black American cities as dystopian war zones. In a 2016 debate with Hillary Clinton, Trump said, “Our inner cities, African Americans, Hispanics are living in hell because it’s so dangerous. You walk down the street, you get shot.” Trump also said to black voters: “You’re living in poverty; your schools are no good; you have no jobs.”

      He frequently offers false crime statistics to exaggerate urban crime, including about Oakland, Philadelphia and Ferguson, Mo.

              Just out report: "United Kingdom crime rises 13% annually amid spread of Radical Islamic terror." Not good, we must keep America safe!
              — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 20, 2017

      He is quick to highlight crimes committed by dark-skinned people, sometimes exaggerating or lying about them (such as a claim about growing crime from “radical Islamic terror” in Britain). He is very slow to decry hate crimes committed by whites against dark-skinned people (such as the killing of an Indian man in Kansas last year).

      • (Score: 2, Informative) by Azuma Hazuki on Tuesday January 28 2020, @02:50AM (5 children)

        by Azuma Hazuki (5086) on Tuesday January 28 2020, @02:50AM (#949778) Journal

        Modding this up so it gets seen, because it happens to be both informative (so +1 Informative)! and relevant.

        If you post this again, alter the wording a bit and change the order of some of the facts, maybe write an intro and an outro, so someone doesn't Spam mod it. Remember, this place is up to its eyeballs in RWNJs, the kind of sociopath who will sodomize the spirit of the law with the letter of the law until the former is bleeding and the latter is bent.

        --
        I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...
        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @04:00AM

          by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @04:00AM (#949843)

          Nah, I'll follow the hypocritical Code of Conduct a certain admin is so fond of.

        • (Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @08:26AM (2 children)

          by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @08:26AM (#949980)
          If only you knew the real poster of the above copypasta. He, or she, is playing you like a fucking fiddle. Honestly, you will be embarassed if you ever work it out.
          • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @06:49PM

            by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @06:49PM (#950171)

            Lol, what kind of weird reasoning is this? I could be one of the hundred of millions of Americans who think Trump is a criminal that should be removed.

            OH NO A PSYOP TO MAKE TRUMP LOOK BAD! Shocking development, it is ACTUALLY A TRUMP SUPPORTER!

            Seriously, wtf level of crazy pills they have you on? What possible conspiracy scenario could you be imagining that would make your point have any sense at all?

          • (Score: 2) by Azuma Hazuki on Wednesday January 29 2020, @01:07AM

            by Azuma Hazuki (5086) on Wednesday January 29 2020, @01:07AM (#950363) Journal

            Enlighten me :)

            --
            I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...
        • (Score: 2, Informative) by slashnot on Tuesday January 28 2020, @09:36PM

          by slashnot (8607) on Tuesday January 28 2020, @09:36PM (#950247)

          Without taking sides, the post is NOT relevant to this topic and does not belong on this forum. I'll go to FOX or MSNBC if I want to see political FUD. I come to Soylent to avoid it.

          Keep it on-topic.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @03:52AM (1 child)

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @03:52AM (#949833)

        One piece of information that breaks your narrative:

        Trump has given more money to historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) than any other president.
        https://www.wusa9.com/mobile/article/news/verify/verify-has-trump-given-more-money-to-hbcus-than-any-other-president/65-543185506 [wusa9.com]

        • (Score: 2, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @06:29AM

          by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @06:29AM (#949943)

          You mean did not cut their budget as much, and that was a troll move to get around separation of church and state objections. One rep said they appreciate the money but were concerned about other education cutbacks that would hurt students more than that HBCU reprieve would help.

          If that is your best example to counter all of his shitty actions and words, well weak sauce dooder.

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @03:47AM (3 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @03:47AM (#949827)

    In the second link https://www.ewg.org/research/national-pfas-testing [ewg.org] , there is a link to this pdf:
        https://www.mass.gov/files/documents/2019/07/08/spring-hill-advisory-july-2-2019_0.pdf [mass.gov]

    And the old standby also chimed in, https://www.consumerreports.org/bottled-water/bottled-water-brands-with-concerning-pfas-levels/ [consumerreports.org]

    And New Hampshire’s investigation, although representing a small sample group, also revealed encouraging results [PDF]. All other brands tested by the department—including major names such as Poland Spring and Polar Arctic Water—registered nondetectable or low amounts of PFAS before the advised 70 ppt limit.

    Massachusetts’ DPH also published a list of bottlers currently testing for PFAS, which includes Coca-Cola-owned Dasani and Poland Spring. Lab results that both brands voluntarily shared with the state showed nondetectable amounts of PFAS.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @04:19AM (2 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @04:19AM (#949862)

      Narrative? Those are all just facts baby! If you see a "narrative" that is on you.

      As for your broken source:

      "The Thurgood Marshall College Fund, an advocate for HBCUs, said told us the group is "appreciative" of the level funding request, but it also said it was "concerned" about other cuts that "could have a detrimental impact on our students' ability to persist and graduate from HBCUs."

      The group cited risks to funding for the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant program and the Federal Work-Study program."

      So he didn't cut HBCUs as much as other schools, and promised to pay. Sounds like the sort of token gesture racists are known for to make it hard to call out their discrimination.

      I would check your link but "You don't have permission to access "http://www.wusa9.com/article/news/verify/verify-has-trump-given-more-money-to-hbcus-than-any-other-presiden"

      Time to find better sources.

      And this:

      "Congress has passed a bill to permanently restore annual funding for Historically Black Colleges and Universities, or HBCUs, and minority-serving institutions. The bill now awaits President Donald Trump’s signature.

      The bipartisan bill was spearheaded by Sen. Doug Jones, D-Ala., and would restore more than $250 million each year to HBCUs. The funding stopped Sept. 30, 2019."

      Huh, so in 2017 Trump signed something, but a Democrat had to lead the effort to keep it going?

      Oooh, another bit:

      "Trump announced Tuesday that his administration would lift a ban on federal funding for faith-based Historically Black Colleges and Universities"

      So it is really about PR and reducing the separation of church and state.

      Now my interpretations could be full of shit, but given Trump's very vocal and frequent racism I put more credence in this being nothing but public relations and religious bullshit. I'm glad it has some positive impact, I mean the guy isn't LITERALLY the devil.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @06:37AM (1 child)

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @06:37AM (#949944)

        shit, clicked the wrong reply somehow, sorry

        • (Score: 0, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @11:34AM

          by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @11:34AM (#950017)

          It's hard to focus when you're having a stroke.

  • (Score: 3, Informative) by anubi on Tuesday January 28 2020, @04:09AM

    by anubi (2828) on Tuesday January 28 2020, @04:09AM (#949850) Journal

    I note the VA is actively dissing having one's blood measured for it...(PFAS).

    https://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/pfas.asp [va.gov]

    Is it just a waste of time measuring it, or is there some correlation someone wants kept dark?

    --
    "Prove all things; hold fast that which is good." [KJV: I Thessalonians 5:21]
  • (Score: 1) by khallow on Tuesday January 28 2020, @05:53AM (7 children)

    by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday January 28 2020, @05:53AM (#949921) Journal
    Ok, so an environmental group does some tests, finds out that they're all below the EPA's recommended 70 parts per trillion and then hypes the hell out of it. So what?
    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @09:58AM (6 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @09:58AM (#949997)

      The tolerable intake is 12 μg/person/day: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6114095/ [nih.gov]
      Which is about 170 liters of water at 70 ppt.
      Even with the alleged draft report's "proposed" (without a shred of supporting evidence) "10 times lower than", it would still be 17 liters. A terminal dose all on its own, contaminants need not apply. :)

      These days, liars rely on people's inability to calculate shit. Learn arithmetics, it is good for your health.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @01:49PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @01:49PM (#950048)

        It could still be concerning if the trend it upward over the years.

        I didn't read it so I don't know if that is the case. However, low numbers that are growing quickly can still be cause for alarm, so we can act before the numbers are dangerous.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @02:11PM (4 children)

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @02:11PM (#950059)

        Which is about 170 liters of water at 70 ppt.

        Just don't whine when your agriculture can't export in Europe
        It is now proposing a tolerable weekly intake of 6ng/kg body weight for PFOS and 13ng/kg body weight for PFOA. [chemicalwatch.com]
        Let me see, from 150ng/day to 6ng/week means a 175 times reduction - a tad higher than 2 orders of magnitude - if one were to trust your computation, only 0.85l of US-standards PFOS free water will suffice to pass the European TDI.
        On the plus side, if you reduce the contamination in US, you'll improve your chances to live a healthier life. But maybe you prefer to live a shorter life and let some extra bucks to your tax office when you die.

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @04:26PM (3 children)

          by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @04:26PM (#950117)

          At the very top of your link:

          Exposure assessment is 'highly uncertain'

          Alarmists, when allowed to take control, will do any number of crazy things. When economic consequences hit, they will not be the ones paying.
          But as for your "can't export in Europe", I don't think so. For so stupid a shot in the trade war, Trump will hammer them quite gladly in retaliation, and the EU economy at the moment doesn't look like it'll be able to soak the damage.

          • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @10:46PM (2 children)

            by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @10:46PM (#950293)

            Alarmists, when allowed to take control, will do any number of crazy things. When economic consequences hit, they will not be the ones paying.

            Of course not. The entire world is tuned to make khallow pay for the world's faults.

            But as for your "can't export in Europe", I don't think so. For so stupid a shot in the trade war, Trump will hammer them quite gladly in retaliation, and the EU economy at the moment doesn't look like it'll be able to soak the damage.

            They'll just sell more Airbus planes and it will be the Americans to pay the Trump's hammering. Not that Boeing is in the position to take the slack.

            • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @11:15PM (1 child)

              by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @11:15PM (#950310)

              Producing more planes (CO2 baaad!) to fly more commoners around (CO2 doubleplusbaaad!!!11) is absolutely against The Climate Goals (tm). As is producing anything material at all, if you think about it (you likely don't). From that, one can easily extrapolate the results (you probably cannot, but that is of no consequence).
              The objective reality is that thing that keeps happening to you despite your wholehearted belief that it should not.

              • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday January 29 2020, @12:20AM

                by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday January 29 2020, @12:20AM (#950340)

                Producing more planes (CO2 baaad!) to fly more commoners around (CO2 doubleplusbaaad!!!11) is absolutely against The Climate Goals (tm)

                Inquisitive minds want to know: is it general or just when europeans do it but Boeing planes are just fine.

  • (Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @07:50AM (3 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @07:50AM (#949973)

    In the Netherlands the government shut down all sectors that were involved with soil movement due to this last year.

    Due to all the uncertainties around PFAS they took the detection limit of it and all soil that contained more was basically forbidden to be moved around untill they determined the safe limit (which took about two months). Still, some construction projects are still on hold, but most things could continue after raising the limit about 7 fold.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday January 29 2020, @03:26AM (2 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday January 29 2020, @03:26AM (#950438)

      citation please?

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday January 29 2020, @07:35AM (1 child)

        by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday January 29 2020, @07:35AM (#950546)

        Dutch news: https://nos.nl/zoeken/?q=PFAS [nos.nl]

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday January 30 2020, @12:10AM

          by Anonymous Coward on Thursday January 30 2020, @12:10AM (#950914)

          Thanks, I was swamped by useless pdfs in english.

  • (Score: 3, Interesting) by jmichaelhudsondotnet on Tuesday January 28 2020, @01:42PM (1 child)

    by jmichaelhudsondotnet (8122) on Tuesday January 28 2020, @01:42PM (#950046) Journal

    When I moved from the united states to europe, I felt like I got about 5 iq points smarter and had fewer headaches all around.

    It was like my brain had to recover.

    I don't care what specific chemical was to blame for that, could be something in the air too, who knows.

    But living in europe was a full body upgrade compared to living in the united states, and my lifestyle changed neglibly otherwise.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @04:34PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 28 2020, @04:34PM (#950122)

      Similar experience here, but with moving from a 20x larger warren deep inland to a medium-sized city on the shore, either factor or both can be in play.

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