European map of pollution footprints caused by perfluoroalkyl substances – PFAS or more informally known as “permanent chemicals”. — This was published on Thursday by the Investigative and Press Consortium, which brought together various media outlets in a common complaint. The work reveals that these toxins, which are still used in a variety of products, have been found in water, soil and sediments in several countries in the EU and the UK. Portugal is polluting eight points in this document.
“Contaminants known as ‘permanent chemicals’, which do not degrade in the environment, accumulate in the body and can be toxic, have been found at elevated levels in thousands of locations across the UK and Europe,” the report warns. PublishedThis Thursday, at Guardian. Although the map indicates eight points of high pollution in Portugal, the exact location of these areas at risk cannot be identified. PÚBLICO asked one of the confederation members for data on the Portuguese case, but has yet to receive a response.
An alert accompanying the investigation’s findings was published simultaneously in several European media outlets. The Investigative and Journalism Consortium includes the following organizations or media outlets: Watershed Investigations, Le Monde (France), N.T.R, WDR, Suddeutsche Zeitung (Germany), Radar Magazine This is Lay Science (Italy), Inquiry desk This is NRC (Netherlands), Journalismfund.eu and Investigative Journalism for Europe.
The contaminant map with a series of substances was released days after the European Union announced its intention to ban PFAS from 2026 or the following year. There are more than nine thousand classes of PFAS Chemical substances are evaluated for their properties Non-sticky and detergents. That’s why they’re used in a myriad of products, from food packaging to kitchenware, textiles, paints, firefighting foams and medical products.
Guardian. River Basin Studies. OpenStreetMap map data.
These substances are informally referred to as “eternal chemicals” because they do not degrade easily, persist in nature, and accumulate in living organisms. The map, just published, shows that these continuous products have been found in around 17,000 locations across the UK and Europe. In total, PFAS were detected at concentrations higher than 1,000 nanograms (ng) per liter of water in about 640 zones, and more than 10,000 ng/l in 300 locations.
Health effects
Two PFAS in particular have been linked to various health problems: PFOA has been linked to kidney and testicular cancer, thyroid disease, ulcerative colitis, high cholesterol and pregnancy-induced hypertension; PFOS has been linked to reproductive, developmental, liver, kidney and thyroid diseases. PFAS have also been associated with immunotoxicity.
“These kinds of concentrations raise concerns,” said Crispin Halsall, a professor at Lancaster University in England who specializes in environmental chemistry. Guardian. There is a risk of livestock accessing these water bodies [, nesse caso, as PFAS entram] In the human food web”.
The expert further recalled PFAS Groundwater is “a big problem” because these reserves are often captured for agriculture or, worse, for human consumption.
Ian Cousins, an environmental scientist at Stockholm University, says sites with measurements above 1,000 nanograms per kilogram “should be urgently assessed” so they can be remedied.
“In places [altamente] Contaminated, local authorities should consider testing to ensure that PFAS levels in local products are safe. This will help determine whether local health advisory and publication campaigns are needed to encourage regular consumption of wild fish, shellfish, and eggs. [produzidos por galinhas] Outside,” he added Guardian.
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