Rainwater is no longer safe to drink anywhere because of ‘perpetual chemicals’

• Rainwater on the ground contains levels of “permanent chemicals” that are not safe for drinking, a study has found.
• Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), which have been linked to cancer, are becoming more prevalent in homes and environments.
• Levels of PFAS on the planet are unsafe, researchers say, and the materials should be limited.

According to a group of environmental scientists, rainwater is not safe for drinking anywhere on Earth under US pollution guidelines.

This is because rainwater on our planet now contains dangerous chemicals called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). In a paper published Aug. 2 in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, researchers at Stockholm University who have studied PFAS for a decade have found evidence that these substances are distributed throughout the atmosphere and are nowhere to be found.

There are thousands of PFAS, all synthetic, in food packaging, water-resistant clothing, furniture, carpets, non-stick coatings on pots and pans, firefighting foams, electronics, and some shampoos and cosmetics. They can be released into the air during production and daily use. They also penetrate into the ocean water and settle in the sea spray air. Then they spread in the atmosphere and return to the earth as rain.

They are often called “forever chemicals” because they last a long time without breaking down, allowing them to be built up by humans, animals and the environment.

PFAS have been found in Antarctic and Arctic sea ice. Its prevalence on the planet is dangerous for human health, because peer-reviewed studies have linked it to some cancers, reduced fertility, decreased immune response, decreased cholesterol levels and developmental delays in children.

As with microplastics, it is difficult to identify all the long-term health effects of PFAS exposure, as they contain many different compounds and are very widespread in the environment. The new paper suggests that everyone on Earth is at risk.

According to EPA limits, ‘rainwater anywhere is considered unsafe for drinking’.

Perhaps the best known of these substances are perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS). In June, based on new data on health effects, the Environmental Protection Agency tightened guidelines on how much PFOA and PFOS can safely be found in drinking water.

Previously, the EPA had set the acceptable level for both substances at 70 parts per trillion. The new guidelines cut that to 17,000 times — the safe levels to 0.004 parts per trillion for PFOA and 0.02 parts per trillion for PFOS.

Stockholm University researchers assessed the levels of PFOA, PFOS and two other PFAS in rainwater and soil across the planet and compared them to regulatory limits. The amount of both substances in rainwater “often exceeds EPA limits”, the authors of the study concluded.

“Based on the latest US guidelines for PFOA in drinking water, rainwater everywhere is considered unsafe for drinking,” Ian Cousins, a professor at Stockholm’s Department of Environmental Sciences, said in a press release.

“In the industrial world, we don’t drink rainwater very often. [directly]Many people around the world expect it to be safe to drink, and it supplies many of our drinking water sources,” added Axons.

The paper also found that soil around the world is “ubiquitously contaminated” with PFAS. Because PFAS last so long and cycle so efficiently through the planet’s oceans, atmosphere and soil, the researchers expect levels to be dangerously high.

Ultimately, the researchers conclude that PFAS have crossed the “planetary boundary” that is safe for human health.

“It is imperative that PFAS be used and that emissions be limited quickly,” they wrote.