Across a decade in which England restricted two of its most notorious industrial compounds, the rivers have begun to give back a measure of hope. The Environment Agency's newly published figures show PFOS and PFOA, long prized for resisting oil and water and now known as forever chemicals, falling by roughly a third in English waters and nearly half in freshwater fish. Yet the chemicals have not vanished from the world; they have mostly thinned out and drifted toward the sea, and their wider family remains largely in use, leaving a question about whether the country will govern them as a whole
PFOS and PFOA Levels in England's Rivers Fall Nearly a Third Over Decade After Restrictions
The rivers look cleaner, but the chemicals haven't gone anywhere.
Mark
The headline is a drop of nearly a third. Is that a clear win?
Mimi
It's a real one for PFOS and PFOA, which were restricted in 2010 and 2020. Rivers are down 30 and 29 percent, and fish are down 49 percent.
Luke
But the report itself says the total amount in the environment is probably unchanged. So what has fallen is concentration, not the quantity of chemical.
Mimi
Right. They break down so slowly that they've been diluted and washed out to sea. The rivers look cleaner, but the chemicals haven't gone anywhere.
Mark
Why does the Environment Agency want all PFAS regulated together?
Mimi
There are thought to be around 15,000, and about 200 are frequently used. Banning them one by one is slow, and the agency says uncertainty remains over the toxicity of many.
Luke
The industry disagrees. It says there's little or no evidence that the others are toxic, and that some are vital in things like medical equipment. That dispute is unresolved.
Mark
What is being done to fill the gaps?
Mimi
The agency is regularly testing for 60 other PFAS, and the government said earlier this month it will begin monitoring levels in people's bodies.
Luke
Worth noting the fish figure and the river figures are what's reported. The article doesn't say what the fall means for human health today.
Mimi
And disposal is a bottleneck too. High-temperature incineration can destroy PFAS, but only two suitable sites exist in the country.
O Pulso
- PFOS fell 30 percent and PFOA 29 percent in English rivers over ten years, while fish levels dropped 49 percent, a result that arrives as a clear signal the bans are working.
- Scientists and regulators warn that the total quantity of these chemicals in the environment is likely unchanged, since they break down so slowly that they have mostly been diluted and carried out to sea.
- Around 15,000 PFAS are thought to exist and roughly 200 are in frequent use, and the Environment Agency is pressing for regulation of the whole group rather than one chemical at a time.
- The chemicals industry resists group-wide controls, arguing that evidence of harm for many PFAS is limited and that some serve vital roles such as in life-saving medical equipment.
- Monitoring is expanding, with the regulator testing for 60 other PFAS and the government planning to measure levels in people's bodies, yet only two suitable sites exist for high-temperature destruction, so the challenge is still landing unresolved.
Across a decade in which England restricted two of its most notorious industrial compounds, the rivers have begun to give back a measure of hope. The Environment Agency's newly published figures show PFOS and PFOA, long prized for resisting oil and water and now known as forever chemicals, falling by roughly a third in English waters and nearly half in freshwater fish. Yet the chemicals have not vanished from the world; they have mostly thinned out and drifted toward the sea, and their wider family remains largely in use, leaving a question about whether the country will govern them as a whole.
On Thursday the Environment Agency published figures showing that PFOS and PFOA, the two most toxic members of the family known as forever chemicals, have been falling in England's rivers. Over the past decade, PFOS concentrations dropped by 30 percent and PFOA by 29 percent, and levels in freshwater fish fell by 49 percent. The decline follows the UK's near-ban of PFOS in 2010 and PFOA in 2020, which came after researchers linked these substances to tissue damage and serious illnesses, including testicular cancer.
The good news carries a caveat. The agency acknowledges that although concentrations have fallen, the total amount of these chemicals in the environment is probably unchanged, because they break down so slowly that they have mostly been diluted and carried out to sea. Dr David Megson of Manchester Metropolitan University called the progress brilliant, while stressing there is much left to do and that the data could help make polluters pay for the damage they caused.
PFOS and PFOA are only a small part of the picture. Around 15,000 PFAS are thought to exist, with about 200 in frequent use, and many remain poorly understood. The agency wants the whole group regulated together, a position the chemicals industry has long opposed. Monitoring is widening in the meantime, with 60 other PFAS now tested regularly and the government planning to measure levels in people's bodies, though destroying these chemicals remains hard, with only two suitable incineration sites in the country.
On Thursday, the Environment Agency published figures showing that the two most toxic of the so-called forever chemicals have been falling in England's rivers. Over the past ten years, concentrations of PFOS have dropped by 30 percent and PFOA by 29 percent. In freshwater fish, levels have fallen by 49 percent.
The regulator and outside experts link the decline to tighter controls on how the substances are used. PFOS and PFOA belong to a family known as PFAS, first developed in the United States in the 1930s. Manufacturers prized them for being resistant to oil and water and for their electrical properties, which made them common in products such as frying pans and firefighting foam. Their resistance to breaking down naturally is what earned them the name forever chemicals.
PFOS and PFOA were the earliest types to be produced. About two decades ago, researchers began linking them to tissue damage in animals and to higher rates of certain serious health conditions, testicular cancer among them. The UK all but banned PFOS in 2010 and did the same for PFOA in 2020. The new river and fish figures cover the decade in which those restrictions took hold.
Dr David Megson, a reader in environmental forensics at Manchester Metropolitan University who studies the chemicals' impact, called it "brilliant" to see how far the country has come in ten years.
The good news comes with a significant caveat. The Environment Agency's report acknowledges that although concentrations have fallen, the total amount of these chemicals in the environment is likely unchanged. Because they break down so slowly, they have largely been diluted and carried out to sea rather than removed. Megson said there is a lot left to do, and that the report offers an essential foundation for investigations aimed at making polluters pay for any damage they have caused.
PFOS and PFOA are also only a small part of the picture. Around 15,000 other PFAS are thought to exist, although only about 200 are frequently used. The agency said that despite growing research, uncertainty remains about the toxicity of many of them. In its view, the findings reinforce the need to regulate PFAS as a group rather than one chemical at a time. The chemicals industry has long opposed that approach, arguing that there is no or only limited evidence that other PFAS are toxic, and that some have vital uses, such as in life-saving medical equipment.
Monitoring is expanding in the meantime. The regulator now regularly tests for 60 other PFAS to build a national picture of contamination, and earlier this month the government announced it would begin monitoring levels in people's bodies. Destroying PFAS permanently is difficult: one of the few reliable methods is high-temperature incineration, and only two suitable sites exist in the country at present.
The next questions are whether regulators move toward group-wide controls on PFAS, and what the new testing of rivers and of people reveals about the thousands of chemicals still in use.
Citações Notáveis
It's brilliant to see how far we have come in the last 10 years.— Dr David Megson, Manchester Metropolitan University
Uncertainty remains regarding the toxicity of many PFAS, and the findings reinforce the need for regulating all PFAS rather than one by one.— Environment Agency (paraphrased)
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