Limited information is available regarding chemical water quality at the tap in Guatemala City, preventing individuals, water utilities, and public health authorities from making data-driven decisions related to water quality. To address this need, 113 participants among households served by a range of water providers across the Guatemala City metropolitan area were recruited as participatory scientists to collect first-draw and flushed tap water samples at their residence. Samples were transported to the U.S. and analyzed for 20 metals and 25 per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). More:

• A Participatory Science Approach to Evaluating Factors Associated with the Occurrence of Metals and PFAS in Guatemala City Tap Water (Research article)

• Bottled Water & PFAS  –  International Bottled Water Association
• Specially treated plastic containers may spread PFAS  –  Chemical & Engineering News

• Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in water and wastewater: A critical review of their global occurrence and distribution (Research article)
• Worldwide drinking water occurrence and levels of newly-identified perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (Research abstract)
• Underrepresented groups in WaSH – the overlooked role of chemical toxicants in water and health (Research article)

• Longitudinal assessment of point-of-use carbon filters for removal of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances from private well water (Research article)

• Perfluoroalkyl chemicals (PFAS)  –  ECHA

A news investigation has revealed alarming levels of so-called PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, in the air, ground, and water surrounding two chemical plants south of Lyon, France’s third-largest city. More:

• 'Forever chemicals': How toxic are the levels of PFAS found in French tap water and breast milk?  –  Euronews.green

• EU’s ‘great detox’ could see up to 12,000 potentially dangerous chemicals banned  –  Euronews.green
• Poisoning generations: US company taken to EU court over toxic 'forever chemicals' in landmark case  –  Euronews.green
• PFAS  –  European Commission
• Perfluorerade alkylsubstanser (PFAS)  –  ECHA
• Registry of restriction intentions until outcome  –  ECHA

• Drinking Water Health Advisories for PFOA and PFOS  –  US Environmental Protection Agency

• Scientists say chemical pollution has now passed the safe limit for humanity  –  Euronews.green

La ville de Pierre-Bénite, une commune française située en région Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, est largement contaminée aux perfluorés. Des prélèvements de sol, d'air et d'eau en atteste, une situation qui inquiète les habitants. More:

• Pollution : l'inquiétude à Pierre-Bénite (YouTube)  –  BFM Lyon

We know by now that PFAS is bad for a myriad of reasons. But it’s also bad because of something we don’t know much about at all, namely what happens when products containing PFAS are thrown in the garbage bin. More:

• Nobody really knows what happens to PFAS when we throw our old products away  –  ChemSec

• PFAS soil and groundwater contamination via industrial airborne emission and land deposition (Research article)
• Atmospheric Deposition and Annual Flux of Legacy Perfluoroalkyl Substances (Research abstract)

• Biomonitoring Research Results (Executive Summary)  –  Zero Waste Europe

There are so many current and upcoming regulations regarding the restriction of PFAS on EU level that they have started to overlap. But that’s a good thing, right – the more bans on harmful “forever chemicals” the better? Actually, legislative overlap risks causing confusion and double-work, potentially creating loopholes rather than stricter regulation. More:

• How many PFAS bans does it take to ban PFAS?  –  ChemSec

• EU puts 200 PFAS out of business – but thousands remain  –  ChemSec
• Proposal for a restriction substance name(s) C9-C14 PFCAs including their salts and precursors  –  ECHA
• Proposed restriction on undecafluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA), its salts and related substances  –  ECHA

PFAS-tainted sewage sludge is used as fertilizer in fields and report finds that about 20m acres of cropland could be contaminated. More:

• ‘Forever chemicals’ may have polluted 20m acres of US cropland, study says  –  The Guardian

• ‘I don’t know how we’ll survive’: the farmers facing ruin in Maine’s ‘forever chemicals’ crisis  –  The Guardian
• Michigan beef found to contain dangerous levels of ‘forever chemicals’  –  The Guardian

• Wisconsin case shows how sewage plants spread unregulated toxins across landscape  –  Wisconsin State Journal

• Researchers Link Increased Risk Of Illness To Sewage Sludge Used As Fertilizer  –  ScienceDaily

Nearly 60% of children’s textiles labeled “waterproof”, “stain-resistant”, or “environmentally friendly” that were tested as part of a new study contained toxic PFAS substances known as “forever chemicals” due to their persistence in the environment. More:

• ‘Forever chemicals’ found in nearly 60% of children’s ‘waterproof’ or ‘stain-resistant’ textiles  –  The Guardian

• How Well Do Product Labels Indicate the Presence of PFAS in Consumer Items Used by Children and Adolescents? (Research article)
• An overview of the uses of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) (Research article)

Tropical mammals are living in an ever-changing chemical landscape warns a recent study, with wildlife increasingly exposed to an array of plastics, pharmaceuticals, pesticides and nanoparticles. The recent study, published in the journal Biological Conservation, warns that this underrecognized threat requires urgent action. More:

• Tropical mammals under rising chemical pollution pressure, study warns  –  South Africa Today

• Feces are Effective Biological Samples for Measuring Pesticides and Flame Retardants in Primates (Research abstract)
• The endangered African Great Ape: Pesticide residues in soil and plants consumed by Mountain Gorillas (Gorilla beringei) in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, East Africa (Research abstract)
• The chemical landscape of tropical mammals in the Anthropocene (Research abstract)
• Lowland tapir exposure to pesticides and metals in the Brazilian Cerrado (Research abstract)

• Forecasting the impacts of chemical pollution and climate change interactions on the health of wildlife (Research article)
• A review of the effects of wildfire smoke on the health and behavior of wildlife (Research article)
• Frontiers in quantifying wildlife behavioural responses to chemical pollution (Research article)
• Micropollutants  –  Current biology

• The use of pesticides in developing countries and their impact on health and the right to food  –  European Parliament
• Scarry New World Record For Use Of Pesticides…  –  Organic Processing and Trade association Europe (OPTA)
• Vultures in Assam die by pesticide poisoning targeting stray dogs  –  Mongabay
• Short-term intake of deltamethrin-contaminated fruit, even at low concentrations, induces testicular damage in fruit-eating bats (Artibeus lituratus) (Research abstract)

• We’ve breached Earth’s threshold for chemical pollution, study says  –  Mongabay
• The nine planetary boundaries  –  Stockholm Resilience Centre

• Commodity plastic burning as a source of inhaled toxic aerosols (Research abstract)
• Atmospheric Occurrence of Legacy Pesticides, Current Use Pesticides, and Flame Retardants in and around Protected Areas in Costa Rica and Uganda (Research abstract)
• Pharmaceutical water pollution detected deep in the Brazilian Amazon  –  Mongabay

• UN report: Urgent action needed to tackle chemical pollution as global production is set to double by 2030  –  UNEP
• Celebrating the First Milestone Towards Establishing a Global Science-Policy Panel  –  IPCP
• The second edition of the Global Chemicals Outlook  –  UNEP
• Precautionary Principle (Research article)

• For European chemical giants, Brazil is an open market for toxic pesticides banned at home  –  Mongabay

An unforgettable scene from the film “Dark Waters” is when the PFAS manufacturer DuPont starts searching for clean blood samples without PFAS so that they can compare them to the blood of their Teflon factory workers. They found none. A combination of factors has created the perfect storm, spreading this chemical family in a totally uncontrolled way all over the globe, into all of us. More:

• The PFAS Story: How did we end up here and what can be done about it?  –  ChemSec

• Risk to human health related to the presence of perfluoroalkyl substances in food (Research article)

• EU puts 200 PFAS out of business – but thousands remain  –  ChemSec
• Five European states call for evidence on broad PFAS restriction  –  ECHA

• When is it justified to use very hazardous chemicals?  –  ChemSec

With more consumers demanding products free of toxic ingredients, determining which ones might be harmful and which ones are safe is difficult. A new research study shows many children’s products, including those with green certifications, contain harmful PFAS chemicals that were not listed on the label. More:

• Many “Eco-Friendly” Children’s Products Actually Contain Toxic PFAS Chemicals  –  SciTechDaily

• How Well Do Product Labels Indicate the Presence of PFAS in Consumer Items Used by Children and Adolescents? (Research article)
• Toxic Convenience: The hidden costs of forever chemicals in stain- and water-resistant products  –  Toxic Free Future
• Dental flossing and other behaviors linked with higher levels of PFAS in the body –  Silent Spring Institute
• Fast food packaging contains potentially harmful chemicals –  Silent Spring Institute

What if we told you many of those tasty packaged food items like cupcakes, chips, cookies, frozen pizza, pies, candy bars, etc. contain certain chemicals concocted in a lab to help them look and taste more appealing and enjoy a much longer shelf life? Could you live with that? Maybe. More:

• Thousands Of Unregulated Chemicals Are Currently In Your Food, Experts Say  –  Eat This Not That

• Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS)  –  US FDA
• EWG analysis: Almost all new food chemicals greenlighted by industry, not the FDA  –  EWG
• GRAS: The Hidden Substances in Your Food  –  Consumer Report
• Toxic Free Food Act (Legislative proposal)

• 6 Toxic Food Ingredients That Have Been Linked to Cancer  –  Eat this not that
• 5 American Food Ingredients That Are Banned in Other Countries  –  Eat this not that
• 6 Dangerous Ingredients That Still Haven't Been Banned in the U.S.  –  Eat this not that
• 11 American Foods That Are Banned Abroad (And How They Can Impact Your Health)  –  Eat this not that
• What Is Titanium Dioxide? And Why It's in Your Food  –  Eat this not that

Europe will greatly accelerate the way it eliminates harmful chemicals. Officials will block the use of large families of chemicals, instead of one by one. The EEB predicts that with this ‘the great detox’ 5,000 to 7,000 of the most notorious chemicals will be gone by 2030, including all flame retardants, bisphenols, PFAS and PVC plastics. More:

• The Great Detox - Largest ever ban of toxic chemicals announced by EU  –  META
• EU unveils plan for ‘largest ever ban’ on dangerous chemicals  –  The Guardian
• Sustainable Chemicals: The Commission advances work on restrictions of harmful chemical substances  –  European Commission

• Chemicals strategy  –  European Commission
• The great detox – largest ever ban of toxic chemicals announced by EU  –  EEB
• Chemical detox plan for Europe announced  –  EEB
• Sustainable Chemicals Strategy of the Union: Time to Deliver - Council conclusions (EU Proceedings document)
• Proposal for a Restrictions Roadmap under the Chemical Strategy for Sustainability –  ECHA

• Storm of protest hits EU roadmap proposals for restrictions on groups of chemicals  –  Chemical Watch
• NGOs cry foul on chemical company linked to Czech PM  –  Politico
• Upcoming EU chemical Legislation Puts Europe’s Fourth Largest Manufacturing Industry At Crucial Crossroads  –  CEFIC

• REACH revision under the Chemicals Strategy  –  European Commission
• REACH Legislation  –  ECHA
• Classification and Labelling Inventory  –  ECHA
• Registry of restriction intentions until outcome  –  ECHA

• Global Chemicals Outlook II: From Legacies to Innovative Solutions  –  UNEP
• Chemicals production and consumption statistics  –  Eurostat Statistics Explained
• The evolving chemicals economy: status and trends relevant for sustainability  –  UNEP
• Attitudes of Europeans towards the Environment  –  European Union

• 700 Number of chemical contaminants in your body right now  –  The World Counts
• Opening remarks by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on toxics and human rights, Baskut Tuncak at the 73rd session of the U.N. General Assembly  –  United Nations Human Rights

• Pollution causing more deaths than COVID, action needed, says U.N. expert  –  Reuters
• The public health impact of chemicals: knowns and unknowns  –  WHO
• Environmental Toxins and Infertility (Research article)
• Neurobehavioural effects of developmental toxicity (Research article)

• Chemical pollution has passed safe limit for humanity, say scientists  –  The Guardian
• Warning of 'ecological Armageddon' after dramatic plunge in insect numbers  –  The Guardian
• Orca 'apocalypse': half of killer whales doomed to die from pollution  –  The Guardian

Mamavation sent 55 tomato & marinara sauces (both organic and conventional) to an EPA-certified laboratory to discover that 8% of tested products in 2021 contained indications of PFAS. Which brands had detections and how is this possible? The answers were surprising. More:

• PFAS Found in Organic Tomato & Pasta Sauce -- Purchasing Guide 2021  –  Mamavation

• FDA: Sampling finds toxic nonstick compounds in some food  –  AP News
• Dangerous Chemicals in Food Packaging Grocery Stores & PFAS  –  Mamavation
• Toxic Packaging Are Fast Food Wrappers Hurting Your Family  –  Mamavation
• Ketchup Ranked Indications of PFAS “Forever Chemicals” Industry Wide  –  Mamavation
• Green Beauty Cosmetic Guide — PFAS “Forever Chemicals” & Makeup  –  Mamavation

• Talking to your Doctor about exposure to PFAS (Fact Sheet)  –  US ATSDR / NCEN
• What are the health effects of PFAS?  –  US ATSDR
• Health effects of PFAS exposure  –  Food Packaging Forum
• PFAS and cancer, a scoping review of the epidemiologic evidence (Research article)

• Thyroid Disrupting Effects of Old and New Generation PFAS (Research article)
• PFAS exposure in infancy linked to reduced vaccine response  –  Environmental Factor
• Maternal levels of perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) during pregnancy and childhood allergy and asthma related outcomes and infections in the Norwegian Mother and Child (MoBa) cohort (Research article)
• Maternal Plasma Perfluoroalkyl Substances and Miscarriage A Nested Case–Control Study (Research article)
• Nonstick Pan Chemicals Linked to Low Sperm Count and Small Penis Size Study Finds  –  Mamavation

• PFAS Treatment in Biosolids – State of Science  –  US EPA
• Top 10 Reasons Why Biosolids are Dangerous  –  Mamavation
• PFAS Statement  –  Songbird Farm

• EPA Takes Action to Investigate PFAS Contamination  –  US EPA
• CDC and ATSDR Award $7 Million to Begin Multi-Site PFAS Study  –  US CDC
• #ToxicFreeFoodFDA  –  Food chemical alliance

• Authorized Uses of PFAS in Food Contact Applications  –  US FDA
• Inventory of Food Contact Substances Listed in 21 CFR  –  US FDA
• FDA acts on fluorinated plastic packaging. What are next steps?  –  Environmental Defense Fund
• PFAS  –  Safer States

• Best & Worst Organic Mattresses 2020–The Wild West of Marketing Claims  –  Mamavation
• Best Home Water Filters for Toxic PFAS “Forever Chemical” Filtration  –  Mamavation
• Best & Worst Small Kitchen Appliances–Toxic Food Contact Materials  –  Mamavation
• Safest Air Fryers & Air Fryer Ovens Sans Toxic PFAS Coatings 2021  –  Mamavation

The Ministry of Environment announced the conclusion of the Sustainable Management of Persistent Organic Pollutants Project, which helped Egypt get rid of 1,000 tons of each of toxic pesticides, and oils contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). More:

• Egypt gets rid of 2K tons of Persistent Organic Pollutants through international funding  –  Egypt Today

The EU has some of the world’s strictest chemical controls but dangerous substances are still creeping into the market, threatening the health of workers, consumers and the environment. Dolores Romano and Andreea Anca look at the flaws in the Authorisation and Restriction procedures of EU’s main chemicals regulation. More:

• Walking the EU’s talk on a toxic-free environment – PART TWO  –  META
• Walking the EU's talk on a toxic-free environment - Part 1  –  META

• Understanding REACH  –  ECHA
• REACH Restrictions  –  European Commission
• Candidate List of substances of very high concern for Authorisation  –  ECHA
• EEB comments to CARACAL regarding REACH Authorisation and Restriction reform  –  EEB

The Commission is presenting proposals to update and modernise the Industrial Emissions Directive, key legislation to help prevent and control pollution. Updated rules will help guide industrial investments necessary for Europe's transformation towards a zero-pollution, competitive, climate-neutral economy by 2050. They aim to spur innovation, reward frontrunners, and help level the playing field on the EU market. More:

• Green Deal: Modernising EU industrial emissions rules to steer large industry in long-term green transition  –  European Commission

• Industrial Emissions Directive  –  European Commission
• Proposal for a DIRECTIVE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL (Legislative document)

• The European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (E-PRTR)  –  European Commission
• Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL (Legislative document)

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) department responsible for protecting the public from toxic substances is working under a new definition of PFAS “forever chemicals” that excludes some of their widely used compounds. More:

• Scientists sound alarm at US regulator’s new ‘forever chemicals’ definition  –  The Guardian

• Implications of PFAS definitions using fluorinated pharmaceuticals (Research article)

• Trifluoroacetic acid safety data sheet  –  Fischer Scientific
• Challenges in the analytical determination of ultra-short-chain perfluoroalkyl acids and implications for environmental and human health (Research article)

• EPA is falsifying risk assessments for dangerous chemicals, say whistleblowers  –  The Guardian

Humanity continues to generate waste at unimaginable levels and very little is recycled. It is simply dumped, with vast quantities ending up in the wider environment and the oceans, or it is burned, which produces unprecedented levels of atmospheric pollution. A review of the global scenario with respect to hazardous household waste fits this picture. More:

• Review of the global scenario with respect to hazardous household waste offers stark warning  –  Phys.org
• Management of household hazardous waste: a review on global scenario (Research abstract)

In 2019, the Nordic Screening group decided to perform a screening on chlorinated paraffins, dechloranes and UV-filters. The following Nordic countries and self-governing areas are included in the project: Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Faroe Islands, Iceland and Greenland. More:

• Screening of Chlorinated Paraffins, Dechloranes and UV-filters in Nordic Countries  –  Nordic Council of Ministers

• Temporal Trends of C8–C36 Chlorinated Paraffins in Swedish Coastal Sediment Cores over the Past 80 Years (Research abstract)
• Chlorinated Paraffins in Car Tires Recycled to Rubber Granulates and Playground Tiles (Research article)
• Occurrence of UV filters, fragrances and organophosphate flame retardants in municipal WWTP effluents and their removal during membrane post-treatment (Research article)

• A review of chlorinated paraffin contamination in Arctic ecosystems (Research article)
• Accumulation of Short-, Medium-, and Long-Chain Chlorinated Paraffins in Marine and Terrestrial Animals from Scandinavia (Research abstract)
• Regulated and Unregulated Halogenated Flame Retardants in Peregrine Falcon Eggs from Greenland (Research abstract)

Recent European Commission legal win against chemical industry group sets an important precedent, holding the door open for more systematic restrictions of substances hampering circular economy under the new revision of the Ecodesign Directive. More:

• The ban on toxic flame retardant stays, chemical industry dismissed by EU court  –  META

• Toxic Loophole: Recycling Hazardous Waste into New Products (Executive summary)  –  Arnica, IPEN, Heal

• Halogenated flame retardants: do the fire safety benefits justify the risks? (Research abstract)

• Judgment of the General Court  –  InfoCuria
• Eternal flame: The quest to ban toxic flame retardants  –  Coolproducts for a cool planet
• Old Flames: The Quest to ban toxic retardants heats up  –  META
• No more halogenated flame retardants in plastic enclosure and stands of display  –  Coolproducts for a cool planet