Scientists studying so-called "forever chemicals" in Florida waterways say the compounds are widespread, difficult to remove and increasingly becoming a focus of research in the Indian River Lagoon.
Dr. Lauren Kleiman, a research associate with ORCA, said PFAS are used in a wide range of industrial applications and consumer products. Their chemical properties make them especially persistent in the environment.
"PFAS stands for per- and polyfluoroalkylated substances. A lot of why we're concerned about them is because they're used in so many different industries and processes, and as flame retardant and firefighting foam. When they're breaking down, they don't really go away, which is how they have this nickname, Forever Chemicals. They just kind of keep transferring around, either into the water, into us, into the animals," Kleiman said.
Unlike many other contaminants, PFAS do not easily break down, creating long-term challenges for water treatment systems and environmental cleanup efforts.
"The processes that you have to do in order to remove them or get rid of them are harder to do. There are certain resins that can bind some of those PFAS substances, but it doesn't necessarily treat all of them. But even once you then bind those up into a resin or some sort of filter, then you have this filter with all of these PFAS in it," Kleiman said. "You're still left with them at the end of the day."
As testing for PFAS expands across the country, researchers have also been examining their presence in the Indian River Lagoon. Kleiman said the chemicals have been detected in multiple types of environmental samples and wildlife collected from the estuary.
"We find them in our sediment samples, water samples. We were looking at fish filet, and I think there were six out of 250 that had below detectable limits for PFAS. So it might still be there, but just small enough that it's not able to be detected. There's people who've studied and found PFAS in manatees, crocodiles within the Indian River Lagoon," she said.
While eliminating PFAS entirely remains a challenge, Kleiman said improving wastewater treatment infrastructure could help reduce the amount entering the environment.
"A lot of it is just having more advanced wastewater treatment and being able to fund people who can take those contaminants out when they're treating wastewater, which has higher concentrations. There's some correlations that have been seen between PFAS and biosolids," she said.
Kleiman will join scientists from Suncoast Waterkeeper and the University of Florida for a public panel discussion on PFAS in Florida waters on Aug. 4. She said public awareness and engagement are important as research into the chemicals continues.
"Being informed, supporting the people who are trying to find out what's happening, and talking to their local representatives so that they are aware that their constituents are concerned about this issue," she said.
The panel discussion begins at noon, and registration is available online.