while they are colloquially called “forever chemicals”, this is a bit of a misnomer. They don’t last forever, but it does take about 8 years for PFAS to biodegrade.
Comments
Log in with your Bluesky account to leave a comment
Then why does the Cape Fear River still have high levels of PFAS? Most of the chemicals have a half-life of over 8 years and are persistent organic pollutants. They do last longer than 8 years and are toxic to most living organisms.
No, just able to keep up with it here in NC since it’s very prevalent in the Cape Fear River. And even your simplistic response, that’s 8 years too long considering it’s a source of drinking water and the treatment plants are not able to sufficiently remove it. But I appreciate your condescension.
PFAS are known as the "forever chemicals" because they are persistent (i.e., they do not break down) in the environment - whether it is 1000 years or 8 as some have theorized. The real issue is no way to remove PFAS from the body - thus preventing and reducing exposures is critical.
What's biodegrading PFAS in the environment? Some quite interesting research suggests microbial degraders are rare sadly. Those dang C-F bonds. So tough! Perhaps you would enjoy this article given your concern: https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/msphere.00721-21
Comments