Groundwater for over 70M Americans could contain ‘forever chemicals,’ USGS says

By Miranda Willson | 10/25/2024 01:28 PM EDT

The first-of-its-kind study provides insight into the risk of PFAS contamination in areas where little monitoring has been done.

A person filling up a glass of water

A new U.S. Geological Survey study looks at PFAS contamination of groundwater. AFP via Getty Images

Over 20 percent of the nation’s population could be drinking groundwater contaminated with “forever chemicals,” according to a first-of-its-kind study by federal researchers.

Published Thursday in Science, the study by scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey estimates the likely occurrence of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, in groundwater used by public water suppliers and private well owners across the lower 48 states.

The USGS has previously estimated that more than 45 percent of the nation’s tap water writ large contains PFAS. But the new study provides a detailed look at PFAS in groundwater specifically, as well as insight on potential contamination in areas where little monitoring has been done, said Andrea Tokranov, a research hydrologist at USGS and lead author on the study.

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“The biggest takeaway is we now have probability estimates for the entire country, which we’ve never had before,” Tokranov said.

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