The nonprofit Environmental Working Group just released an update to its Tap Water Database, finding that nearly half of the American population is drinking water containing PFAS, otherwise known as “forever chemicals.”
The EWG is a research advocacy group dedicated to monitoring agricultural subsidies, toxic chemicals, and drinking water pollutants. It’s been creating a Tap Water Database for nearly two decades, with the last report issued in 2021. To create its latest database, the EWG audited water quality data from nearly 50,000 American water systems between 2021 and 2023. It identified 324 contaminants—like nitrate, arsenic, and disinfection byproducts—in drinking water across the country, “with detectable levels in almost all community water systems.”
In many cases, the report notes, these detectable levels fall below the legal limits set by the Environmental Protection Agency, but they nevertheless exceed the “health-based standards” established by the EWG itself. And, despite recent federal efforts to regulate PFAS in tap water, the group found that a large portion of Americans are consuming forever chemicals on a daily basis.
“The reason we publish this database is so people are aware that, one, there are contaminants in their drinking water, and two, even at perfectly legal limits, in most cases contaminants are present at concentrations that are linked to health harm,” says Sydney Evans, senior science analyst at the EWG.
What are the forever chemicals in tap water?
PFAS, or perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are a class of synthetic chemicals commonly used in consumer goods like nonstick pans and stain resistant fabrics. In recent years, PFAS have been linked to increased risk of cancer, developmental delays, decreased fertility, and other health impacts. To make matters worse, these chemicals are persistent: They last for thousands of years at a time, are difficult to destroy, and are already present in the blood of most Americans.
Last April, the EPA finalized the first-ever federal limits on six types of PFAS in drinking water. As The Conversation noted at the time, “The limits . . . are less than a drop of water in a thousand Olympic-sized swimming pools, which speaks to the chemicals’ toxicity.” Public water systems have until 2027 to complete monitoring for PFAS, and removing them is a laborious process that’s expected to require billions of dollars each year.
As of right now, the EWG found, PFAS are present in the drinking water of over 143 million Americans. Overall, the concentration of PFOS in the national water supply has risen over time: While the EWG’s 2021 Tap Water Database showed PFOS in 28 states (929 utilities, serving 28 million people), it’s now in 45 states (4,486 utilities, serving 104 million people.) These numbers are expected to increase as testing continues.
“The more that we test for PFAS, the more places that we’re finding it,” Tasha Stoiber, a senior scientist at EWG, told the publication Heatmap. “It’s being addressed in a patchwork way.”
How can I test and filter my water?
The fate of PFAS regulation in tap water is now relatively murky, given that several of President Donald Trump’s recent EPA appointees have a history of opposing PFAS regulations. In addition, the conservative Project 2025 agenda includes language that appears to call for fewer chemical regulations.
“As a result of the new administration, a lot of these drinking water protections are under threat,” Evans says. “There’s potential that [the federal PFAS] limits could be raised, or that [the regulations] could be pulled back, which we think would be a huge step backward for such a big win that we’ve seen for environmental health over the past few years.”
While systemic change will require continued federal intervention, there are a few steps that individuals can take to make sure their water is safe. To start, the EWG’s Tap Water Database allows users to search by local water system to discover any reported contaminants, and the site will recommend an appropriate water filter based on the results. The EWG has also tested a number of water filters to suggest the best options for removing PFAS. Filters using activated carbon, ion exchange resin, and reverse osmosis are all potential options that have shown to be effective.
Ultimately though, Evans says, the responsibility for PFAS should rest with the systems that create and regulate them, not with everyday Americans. “It shouldn’t be on the individual to guarantee that their drinking water is safe,” she says.
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