Gathering on Groundwater Contamination Plumes in Fairbanks November - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Pamela Miller, Executive Director Alaska Community Action on Toxics pamela@akaction.org www.akaction.org

Presentation for the Community Gathering on Groundwater Contamination Plumes in Fairbanks

November 27, 2017

• ACAT believes everyone has the right to clean air, clean water,

and toxic-free food.

• Our goal is to protect Alaskans’ health and environment by

eliminating exposures to toxic chemicals.

• Our methods include:
• Science
• Education
• Advocacy and community organizing
• Policy change

• Community-based participatory

research—field and community health investigations

• Respond to community calls for

assistance

• GIS computer mapping
• Environmental health education
• Environmental justice and

human rights workshops

• Alaska Collaborative on Health

and Environment (AK-CHE)

• Achieve policy change on local,

national and international levels

700 active and abandoned military sites in Alaska—Many co-located with Alaska Native villages

Norton Sound

Global Transport of Persistent Chemicals into the Arctic/North

Our chemical environment

• Over 85,000 chemicals in commerce—thousands of

these are endocrine-disrupting chemicals

• Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976 (TSCA)—

ineffective and out of date. Required testing of just

• ver 200 of those chemicals and it regulated only

five

• TSCA amended and signed by the President July

2016 – Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act

• Language to protect vulnerable populations,

however still no functioning program for the regulation of endocrine-disrupting chemicals

Highly fluorinated chemicals or PFAS Per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances

What makes this class of chemicals unique?

• Persistence

C-F bond is very strong

• Complexity
• Versatility

Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) or C8

Nomenclature-- Per- and Poly-Fluorinated Chemicals

• Per = fully fluorinated

(PFOS—perfluorooctane sulfonic acid)

• Poly = partly fluorinated (8:2

FtS Fluorotelomer sulfonate)

Widely used in products

• Carpets and upholstery
• Waterproof fabrics
• Waxes (floor, skis)
• Non-stick cookware
• Paints and coatings
• Food packaging
• Personal care products
• Dental floss
• Electronics—

semiconductors

• Metal plating

PFOS - Perfluorooctane Sulfonate PFOA - Perfluorooctanoic acid PFHxS -Perfluorohexane sulfonate 6:2 FtS - fluorotelomer sulphonate Large group of fluorinated compounds (PFAs/PFCs)

• industrial uses eg metal plating,

semiconductors, coatings

• consumer products eg Teflon, Scotchguard
• AFFF firefighting foams: fluorosurfactants /

fluorotelomers

PFOS and PFOA in consumer products

Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs)

• PFOS listed with some exemptions to be phased out
• PFOA currently being assessed
• PFHxS nominated and found to meet criteria

POPs / persistent organic pollutants

• 4 characteristics

Persistent : PFOS & PFOA don’t breakdown Transboundary : travel by air, water & wildlife

• ‘poisons without passports’

Bioaccumulative : build up in our bodies

• passed from mother to child in utero & via

breastmilk Toxic Exposure via water, food & dust

PFOS and PFOA are POPs!

The Language of the Stockholm Convention

• “Aware of the health concerns…in particular impacts upon

women and children and, through them, upon future generations.”

• “Conscious of the need for global action…”
• “Acknowledging that precaution underlies the concerns of all

the Parties and is embedded within this Convention…”

• “Determined to protect human health and the environment…”
• “Acknowledging that the Arctic ecosystems and Indigenous

communities are particularly at risk...”

Sources of Drinking Water Contamination

• AFFF (aqueous film-forming foam) for

fuel fires

• Production facilities
• Waste disposal sites
• Wastewater
• Other industries

Watersheds with point sources have higher detection frequencies for PFAs

Drinking water supplies for 6 million U.S. residents exceed US EPA’s lifetime health advisory (70 ng/L) for PFOS and PFOA. Reference: Hu et al. 2016 ES&T Letters 3:344-350.

Patrick Breysse, Director of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) National Center for Environmental Health, described the highly fluorinated chemicals in firefighting foam as “one

• f the most seminal public health challenge for the

next decades.” Breysse estimated 10 million Americans are currently drinking contaminated

• water. He said “soon we think that hundreds of

millions of Americans will be drinking water with levels of these chemicals above levels of concern.”

NJ DWQI 2016 Increases in serum PFOA concentrations predicted from mean and upper percentile consumption of drinking water with various concentrations of PFOA, as compared to U.S median and 95th percentile serum PFOA levels (NHANES, 2011-12).

Mixture of PFAS in AFFF

Jakobsson (2015) Copenhagen Workshop

Discovery of 40 Classes of PFAS in AFFF and AFFF-impacted groundwater

• “Little is known about the newly discovered

PFASs with regards to subsurface remediation strategies, transport, and

• toxicity. The (presumed) wide range of

solubilities for the newly discovered PFASs may pose challenges for using ex situ remediation techniques, such as granulated active carbon, because shorter-chained compounds are likely to break through systems designed to capture PFOS and PFOA.” Higgens et al. (2017) ES&T Letters

A chronology…

2005 Sweden proposes global ban on PFOS 2006 Canada & EU announce PFOS ban

• US & EU Co’s commit to PFOA

ban by 2015 (China & Asia ramp up production) 2009 PFOS listed in Stockholm Convention 2013 Europe Union severely restricts PFOA 2014 Norway bans PFOA 2015 US woman wins $1.6 million compensation from Dupont for kidney cancer

• EU nominates PFOA to

Stockholm Convention 2016 US man wins $5.1 million for testicular cancer 1938 created by 3M

• 1949 Teflon non stick
• 1956 Scotchguard fabric

treatment 1962 Dupont Internal health report 1968 PFOS in human blood 1980s US drinking water contamination 1987 PFOA cancer in rats study 2000 OECD PFOS ‘cause for concern’

• US EPA bans PFOS with

exemptions

• 3M announces end PFOS

production 2003 NICNAS rec. discontinue PFOS foams 2004 found in 100% umbilical cord blood

‘

are there safe levels…..which safe level…?

USEPA Health Advisories 2016

• reduce drinking water levels 3-5 fold to

combined 70 ppt for PFOS and PFOA Grandjean & Clapp 2015 - 1 ppt PFOA State Level Drinking Water Guidelines:

• Alaska—400 ppt
• New Jersey—now 14 ppt MCL PFOA and

considering 13 ppt PFNA

• Vermont—20 ppt
• Minnesota—formerly 300 ppt;

In 2017 => reduced to 35 ppt PFOA 27 ppt PFOS

• New York and West Virginia—70 ppt

Animal studies PFOS : reproductive & developmental toxicity, neurotoxicity, immunotoxicity, thyroid & liver cancer PFOA : liver & kidney toxicity, developmental toxicity, liver, testicular & pancreatic cancer, increase in obesity in

• ffspring of exposed mice

‘Developing fetus is particularly sensitive to PFOS & PFOA toxicity’

Evidence of harm…

‘

‘Human epidemiology data report associations between PFOS exposure & high cholesterol, thyroid disease, immune suppression & some reproductive & developmental parameters, including reduced fertility... Some human studies suggest an association with bladder, colon & prostate cancer.’ (US EPA 2016) ‘…report associations between PFOA exposure & high cholesterol, increased liver enzymes, decreased vaccination response, thyroid disorders, pregnancy-induced hypertension & preeclampsia, & cancer (testicular & kidney).’ (US EPA 2016) PFC Mixtures

• endocrine /hormone disruption, thyroid disease,

immunotoxicity, obesity at current levels

Evidence of adverse human health effects

‘

‘So what does the rest of the world think…??’

U.N. POPs Review Expert Committee concludes : ‘PFOS and PFOA are likely, as a result of long range environmental transport, to lead to significant adverse human health & environmental effects’ ‘PFOA epidemiological evidence for kidney & testicular cancer, disruption of thyroid function and endocrine disruption in women’ International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classifies PFOA “possibly carcinogenic to humans” (Group 2B) EU classifies PFOA carcinogenic & toxic to reproduction

• ‘May damage the unborn child’

Neurodevelopmental

• Higher serum PFAS concentrations were associated with

parent-reported behavioral problems: Hyperactivity, peer relationship, and conduct problems  Internalizing and externalizing problems Autism screening composite scores

• Related to post-natal, but not prenatal, exposure
• Adverse effects in girls and null or positive effects in boys

Oulhote et al. Environ Int (2016) Adapted from Carignan 2017

Impacts on Immune Function

National Toxicology Program (2016):

• “Presumed immune hazard to humans”
• PFOA and PFOS: Antibody response suppression

in animals and humans

• PFOA: Reduced infectious disease resistance,

increased hypersensitivity-related outcomes, and increased autoimmune disease incidence in humans

• PFOS: Suppresses disease resistance and natural

killer cell activity

National Toxicology Program Monograph on Immunotoxicity Associated with Exposure to Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA) or Perfluorooctane Sulfonate (PFOS) (September 2016) Adapted from Carignan 2017

Reduced Infectious Disease Resistance PFAS in Children (Norway)

Granum et al. J Immunotoxicol (2013)

• Children whose blood had higher PFAS

levels:

• produced fewer antibodies to rubella

vaccination at 3 years of age &

• had increased frequencies of the common cold

and gastroenteritis

Adapted from Carignan 2017

Antibody Response Suppression

• Children with higher blood levels of PFAS

produce fewer antibodies after vaccination for diphtheria and tetanus (DTaP). Morgensen et al. 2015

• Vaccination Used As A Model Of Immune

Function

• Extrapolation suggests drinking water standard

closer to 1 ppt Grandjean and Clapp New Solutions (2015) ; slide adapted

from Carignan 2017

ATSDR Physician Fact

https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/pfc/docs/pfas_cli nician_fact_sheet_508.pdf

Routine Physical

• Cholesterol
• Thyroid
• Iodine sufficiency
• Vitamin D sufficiency
• Kidney function
• Reproductive cancers

Adapted from Carignan 2017

‘

Suggested Actions andActivities

• Organize and meet with others who are affected in

Fairbanks

• Contact other groups around the country (e.g.

Testing for Pease)

• Decide what you want and how to get there
• Safe water source
• Health protective standard
• Biomonitoring of blood levels
• Health screening and/or
• medical monitoring
• Accountability
• Clean up
• Compensation
• Other?
• Establish strategy committee

How can I reduce my exposure?

 Avoid stain-resistant carpets and upholstery

 Avoid products with words containing “perfluor-” and “polyfluor-”, and PTFE on the label  Choose cast iron, glass, or enamel cookware  Filter drinking water with a solid block carbon filtration system  Eat fresh foods to avoid fast food packaging  Avoid microwave popcorn and greasy foods wrapped in paper  Tell retailers and manufacturers you want products without fluorinated chemicals

Resources

• Alaska Collaborative on Health and the Environment

https://www.akaction.org/tackling_toxics/alaska/che-ak/

• Northeastern University PFAS Project

https://pfasproject.com/

• Testing for Pease

http://www.testingforpease.com/

• National Toxics Network (Australia)

http://www.ntn.org.au/