The widespread production and use of PFAS chemicals creates a huge health, environmental, and financial burden on society, the costs of which are mostly paid for by individuals, local communities and authorities instead of the actual polluters. A new website by the Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL) sheds light on five cases of PFAS pollution affecting communities across Europe and provides resources for concerned citizens and health professionals to take action.
Short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, PFAS are a family of thousands of chemicals that include PFOA, PFOS, GenX as some of its most infamous members. It is estimated that some 17,000 sites all over Europe are contaminated by PFAS and that 12,5 million Europeans are living in communities with drinking water polluted with these chemicals, exposure to which has been linked to different types of cancer, thyroid disease, immune dysfunction and hormone disruption.
