Most people in the United States have PFAS chemicals in their blood, according to the Centers for Disease Control. That includes Chicagoans who get their water from Lake Michigan. 

To address this issue nationwide, the Biden administration and the Environmental Protection Agency announced on April 9 ground-breaking action to reduce six types of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl compounds (PFAS) in drinking water within five years. 

There are thousands of different PFAS chemicals, but the EPA’s new regulation targets six of the most common. Among those, Dr. Gail Prins, a UIC Medical School professor, says two are the most pervasive and dangerous. 

“There are two big culprits, PFOA and PFOS,” she said. “They’re linked to things like Teflon, ScotchGuard, firefighting foam and Gore-Tex products.”

When these products are manufactured and discarded, the chemicals within them seep into lakes, rivers and other water sources. 

As of last week, the EPA has set strict limits on PFOS and PFOA at four parts per trillion in drinking water. 

Other common PFAS-adjacent chemicals are now limited to 10 parts per trillion. For context, one part per trillion is equivalent to one drop of water in 20 Olympic-sized swimming pools. 

PFAS are often called “forever chemicals” because they are man-made chemical bonds that don’t break down and instead accumulate in the environment and in human and animal bodies. 

A 2020 article in the National Library of Medicine found that PFAS, among other toxins, were detected in Chicago tap water, not just lake water, before filtration. 

“The PFAS chemicals are in Lake Michigan and come into our water stream,” Prins said. 

The Chicago study classified PFAS contamination in Chicago tap water as “low exposure,” meaning that levels of toxins were not anywhere near those found in states like Michigan and North Carolina, where people are advised not to drink tap water. 

The study emphasized the “high quality” of Lake Michigan as a drinking water source and 

“The efficacy of the drinking-water treatment and monitoring.”

Nevertheless, Prins said it is never a bad idea to take extra precautions by using at-home filters. 

The Illinois EPA PFAS sampling network confirmed 149 sites with PFAS detected out of 1,428 sites tested in calendar year 2020-2021. Glencoe, Wilmette, Winnetka, and Evanston were among the sites where PFAS levels were detected at or exceeding current Illinois EPA standards. 

The CDC links PFAS ingestion to certain cancers, immune dysfunction that makes vaccines less effective, reproductive challenges, Type 2 diabetes and slowed neural development, among other illnesses. 

“Some effects are present at really low doses, which makes these limitations in water meaningful,” Margaret Bell, a DePaul professor of biological sciences, said. 

Robert Michaels, managing attorney at the Environmental Law and Policy Center, says these standards will be translated into enforceable law under the Safe Drinking Water Act following a three-year monitoring period. 

The EPA says all public water systems have three years to complete initial monitoring for PFAS chemicals. During this period, water testing organizations must inform the public of PFAS levels measured in their drinking water. 

Wherever PFAS levels exceed the new EPA standards, more extensive filtration systems will be implemented to reduce PFAS concentration within five years.

“The general idea is that these are legally enforceable drinking water standards, and after this period of initial monitoring, cities across the country are going to have to implement solutions to reduce PFAS and drinking water within five years,” Michaels said. 

Where to go from here

The EPA says implementing this new regulation will cost about $1.5 billion yearly but will save thousands of lives and prevent many illnesses.

Bell, the DePaul professor, said this regulation is an important start but not the end of the fight against PFAS contamination. 

“It will also be important to address (PFAS’) presence in a range commercial goods that we come into physical contact with every day, including surface protectors on upholstery, water resistant clothing, food packaging and a range of other products — even waterproof mascara or floss,” Bell said. 

Prins said that once these standards take effect, companies that use PFAS will likely have to reduce their reliance on the chemicals to comply with federal regulations. 

Still, she insisted that America’s regulation system is flawed.  

“We have it backwards in the United States,” she said. “We allow chemical companies and people to just manufacture substances without doing any work on their toxicity. And then when other people like us find that they’re toxic, … you have to go through years and hoops.”

She said federal regulations are too often reactive instead of proactive. 

Making new regulations like this stick could get more difficult if former President Donald Trump is re-elected president in November, Michaels said, noting that another Trump administration will likely sue to overturn these regulations in favor of big corporations. 

Michaels said that soon after the Biden administration announces any new regulations or acts, “A coalition of red state attorney general’s and right wing nonprofits run into court and try to stop them, saying that they’re not justified and that they’re unlawful.”

But it is ill-advised to get ahead of the good news that has just occurred. Michaels hopes that these new standards will improve living conditions for Americans and lead to greater scientific discovery. 

“Having the ability to do things more cleanly shows that regulation can help drive innovation,” he said. “And that’s the cycle that you want to be in.”