The good newsis that you can clean water of PFAS either at the water plant, or in a restauration project by pumping up the groundwater, filtering it and letting it re infiltrate.
The bad news is that it is very expensive, especially when treating an aquifer. However the sooner whatever is already in the ground and water is contained, the more damage can be prevented down the line.
Local authorities estimate nearly 3,000 people in the Haut-Rhin region fall into “vulnerable” categories. Each will receive a single €80 payment to help cover the cost of bottled water. But for people such as Wiedemann, the threat goes far beyond compensation.
What the fuck France? 80€ for having to rely on bottled water for the foreseeable future is a complete joke of a compensation, especially only going to vulnerable households.
A reverse osmosis filter will run you $150 for parts - plus install and yearly filter changes. Start with that for costs. I would assume eu costs are similar but that is sometimes very wrong.
And what to do with the waste water from the reverse osmosis (now more contaminated than the input)? And who pays for the water wasted?
it goes to the sewer system which needs to be able to take care of things anyway. The amount of waste water through a RO system insignificant - your toilet flushing needs will use more water than your RO drinking water needs. (a typical low flush toilet, though some camping toilets use less)
Good lord, what are these comments? This is like a reddit meme page with no real information and if anything a bunch of misinformation.
Article TlDr;
Cause: The source was a firefighting foam used at the airport since the 1960s, ending only in 2017… Toxic residues from the foam lingered, filtering through the soil into drinking water and people’s bodies – probably over decades.
Effect: The person with the highest had 22 micrograms per litre (mcg/l) of blood. The average was 14.9mcg/l, which would make people in Saint-Louis among the most contaminated 5 to 10% in France… Long-term adverse health effects are possible for people with levels above 6.9mcg/l of blood
Solution: To remedy the problem, the local authority plans to install new water treatment plants at a cost of €20m, and a further €600,000 a year to run. From 2026, water bills will probably rise to help pay for it.
They’re trying to sue the airport that released all these chemicals, which are also extremely toxic to the firefighters (Firefighters’ exposure to per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) as an occupational hazard: A review). Unfortunately it seems they’re protected from the fact those chemicals were “certified” at the time of use so weren’t doing anything under the radar.
Reverse Osmosis treatment for water
If your goal is PFAS removal, be sure to choose a reverse osmosis solution with the right type of additional filtration stage. Look for certification to the NSF/ANSI 53 standard for PFOA and PFOS from an accredited third-party organization (like the Water Quality Association) for specific contaminant reduction. (link)
Study: PFAS Exposure Through Skin Causes Harm Similar to Ingestion
While skin exposure to PFOA is of concern, studies evaluating the immunotoxicity of dermal exposure are lacking. These studies evaluated the immunotoxicity of PFOA (0.5–2% w/v, or 12.5–50 mg/kg/dose) following dermal exposure using a murine model… The IgM antibody response to sheep red blood cell. was significantly reduced in the spleen following 4-days of dermal exposure (2%). PFOA exposure produced a significant decrease in thymus (1 and 2%) and spleen (0.5–2%) weight along with an increase in liver weight (0.5–2%). Immune cell phenotyping identified a reduction in the frequency (1 and 2%) and number (0.5–2%) of splenic B-cells. (study link)
Stay safe out there everyone. I hope with the new regulations for the EU coming into play that the world’s governments will start responding and if we have some decent politicians in place we might get some actionable movement that will hold companies responsible.
But how can you hold a company accountable if they use something which at that time was legal and the company followed the law as well.
It is sad to say, but the companies probably go scot free.
Adding in that there’s a huge push for this in the US right now too
