Existing in the rain of PFAS chemical poses a threat to the safety of drinking water

(from: Environmental Science & Technology)

Researchers point out - PFAS chemicals with non-stick, stain-resistant properties can be found in household food packaging, cookware, electronics, and even cosmetics.

However, these chemicals appear to be increasingly mixing with rainwater, making it unsafe to drink.

To make matters worse, the problem isn't unique, it's common around the world—even Antarctica.

Baseline levels of permanent chemicals have declined significantly over the past 20 years as public awareness has increased.

The value of PFAS, considered toxic in drinking water, has dropped considerably, but current levels of a particular chemical have raised concerns about the safety of rainwater.

Given the important role rainwater plays in some regions' ecosystems, chemicals such as perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) are of great concern.

This permanent chemical is known to cause cancer, and the U.S. guidance has been lowered to 1 in 37.5 million.

Because PFOA in rainwater is ubiquitous, even if the toxicity of drinking water is not one-shot, unsafe drinking for a long time can still lead to health problems such as cancer.

The United States does not use rainwater harvesting as a significant source of drinking water, but rainwater still plays an important role in other countries' water systems.

And such high concentrations of known toxic chemicals in water can significantly reduce the use of rainwater—meaning these countries may have to consider other Clean water option.

The good news is that we've seen some great work in this area, such as engineers creating a "one-click" fresh water purification filtration system, which hopefully can be rolled out in other areas that rely more on rainwater.Come.