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Regina Barber here with Science correspondent Ping

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Long and she's been reporting about a

0:26

new rule that affects our drinking water.

0:28

Hey Gina! Yeah, so this new final

0:30

rule from the Environmental Protection Agency announced

0:33

on Wednesday at Pets a limit on

0:35

the amount of certain chemicals and our

0:37

drinking water of that are called Pfs

0:39

Okay, I've heard of these. they're also

0:42

called Forever Chemicals Been but I have

0:44

to him and I really don't know

0:46

what they are. It's understandable. P Fast

0:49

stands for Per Floral alkyl and poly.

0:51

Flow Alkyl Substance: Okay, those words are

0:53

not familiar to you, have a bit

0:55

of a mouthful. but the thing about

0:57

these chemicals is that they don't exist

1:00

in nature of their human made, and

1:02

they have a super strong carbon florian

1:04

bond. That's what they have in common.

1:06

They're used for making materials that shed

1:08

water or are resistant to Greece, for

1:11

example, like my beloved nonstick pans. But

1:13

if the Be is limiting these chemicals,

1:15

there's gotta be a downside to them,

1:17

right? Yeah, there is. So p Fast.

1:19

As you alluded to. Are called for

1:22

every chemicals because they tend to stick

1:24

around for a very long time and

1:26

they build up and people and animals

1:28

and in the environment Like p Fast

1:30

started cheering up and products in the

1:32

nineteen forties and they don't break down

1:34

for hundreds maybe even thousands of years

1:36

and nature so the ones that were

1:38

made than are still around today. Oh.

1:41

And they were manufactured by a few well

1:44

known companies like Du Pont and Three Am

1:46

I heard of them. And

1:48

these chemicals have been linked increasingly too

1:50

many kinds. Of health problems,

1:52

serious illnesses like certain cancers

1:54

yada, plus things like lower

1:57

fertility I, cholesterol and liver

1:59

damage. Though the play as now putting

2:01

a limit on six p Fast and our

2:03

drinking water out of the more than twelve

2:06

thousand p Fast chemicals out there. So

2:09

today on the show there's something. In

2:12

the water he said we get into

2:14

the science behind. But they are and

2:16

how they can affect your health plus more.

2:18

And this new T P A rule. It's

2:20

a big deal because it's the first time

2:22

to eat yeah has imposed enforceable when it's

2:24

on T Fast and our drinking water you're

2:26

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for more information. That's

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T-E-L-A-D-O-C health slash whatsyourwhy. Are

3:37

getting? Tell me more about p Fast These

3:39

forever chemicals that end up in our drinking

3:41

water. Where do they come from? So they

3:44

come from a lot of different places like

3:46

we were talking that early as they started

3:48

showing up and products that people were bound

3:50

and then out and forty's on that were

3:53

waterproof and steam so they were coated with

3:55

thing for pop on and scott card and

3:57

they are found in a sense of panic.

4:00

My nonstick pans, cloud clothing like

4:02

raincoats make up even furniture and

4:04

and then industrially. They were also

4:06

used and firefighting, sound and medical

4:08

devices and semiconductors and now after

4:10

so many years as use their

4:12

found in the bodies of humans

4:14

and animals and because they have

4:17

a strong molecular bonds as we

4:19

were mentioning they're very litter breakdown

4:21

they can build up and people

4:23

in the environment even babies now

4:25

are born with the some their

4:27

blood. Of the

4:29

key for. This role as that they're even an

4:31

artist potter so pants lie the he be a

4:33

service for thing them. Okay, So our

4:35

peace us in our water because they

4:38

get washed down our dreams and introduced

4:40

into our water systems. That's part of

4:42

it. I think a bigger contributor though

4:44

is the manufacturing process. So chemical factories

4:46

has polluted the air and the crowd

4:48

lotta around some. It's also a particular

4:50

problem near earth and military bases and

4:52

other places that have used a lot

4:54

of fire fighting. some words least into

4:56

the water supply than once teeth us

4:59

as in the tap water people drink.

5:01

get that exposure as been linked to

5:03

immune and developmental, the image and infants.

5:05

And children. Woof! That's really distressing. And

5:07

I know that there's been a lot

5:09

of debates about just like how harmful

5:12

various pieces chemicals are to humans are

5:14

there has been. Yeah, so is part

5:16

of the reason this ruling is coming

5:18

out. Now, just because scientists are finding

5:21

more definitive answer is about how humans

5:23

are affected by these pieces chemicals. Yeah,

5:25

the certainly a part of it. So

5:27

it's always hard to draw perfect links

5:30

between specific individual chemicals and human health

5:32

because we're all exposed to so many

5:34

of them. And it's It's really not

5:36

ethical to do like to write human

5:38

testing to establish levels of harm. I

5:40

mean even as recently as Twenty Sixteen

5:42

and Pure has reported that that you

5:44

play said that piece asks are not

5:46

a Sat at low levels which they

5:48

said at the time and seventy parts

5:50

per trillion that than that. and by

5:52

October Twenty Twenty one the he p

5:54

released of keep Our Strategic Road Map

5:57

with Three Goals and the very first

5:59

school that was. Just literally.

6:01

research. Investing in research, development, innovation,

6:03

to really sort of understand how p

6:05

fast chemicals affect human and environmental health,

6:08

and to understand which interventions would actually

6:10

be effective and past that researchers really

6:12

needed because I'm in. Oh gee, I

6:14

know, you know this. but just because

6:17

the chemical isn't just it doesn't mean

6:19

that it will be harmful. The thresholds

6:21

matter, you know. For example, cyanide and

6:23

apple seeds are assessed in there and

6:26

all the apple seeds. but it's safe

6:28

to eat some, so vote the level

6:30

of chemical really matters. And the case

6:33

is different for certain. Keep asking of

6:35

eg. now says that even tiny amounts

6:37

of to specific types of P fast

6:39

called Pf Away and Pf alas pose

6:41

health risks. Okay so the Ph just

6:43

put a limit on six Pff chemicals,

6:46

what our current levels and how will

6:48

it change. Under the new rules. So

6:50

it's not totally clear what the current

6:52

levels are across the board. Some communities

6:54

have been super proactive than monitoring, but

6:57

it's not been required in many places.

6:59

so that's what these first three years

7:01

of monitoring will establish: how much piece

7:03

as no water and whether to these

7:05

new thresholds from the eat. Yea than

7:07

those that do it see those special

7:10

will have an additional two years install

7:12

water treatment technologies to lower levels of

7:14

these Pfs under the thresholds. There's a

7:16

few ways they can do this: they

7:18

can install filters, are chemically. Treat the

7:20

water and these new piece hour specials

7:23

are low they said it for parts

7:25

per trillion to ten parts per trillion

7:27

for okay you yeah really really low

7:29

for a few individual pieces on depending

7:31

on the chemical and there's also now

7:33

a limit on mixes of two or

7:35

more as some of his Us on

7:37

the less the Ps as if they

7:39

expect that these access P fast levels

7:42

will be found only in about six

7:44

to ten percent of our water systems,

7:46

but that would still affects some a

7:48

hundred million people in the Us. Which

7:50

is almost a third of our population.

7:52

That's a lot of people and only

7:54

a small number of more than twelve

7:56

thousand different. p Fast. Like, What about

7:59

the other thing? Wow,

8:01

that is a lot of data and

8:03

research take collapse and scientists are gonna

8:06

be studying p Fast for many years

8:08

to understand the full extent of the

8:10

possible ways they affect human and ecological

8:12

health. Some people are even saying that

8:15

it should be regulated and a blanket

8:17

way as a class of chemicals that

8:19

for now these are the specific chemicals

8:21

that the A Ph has a good

8:24

amount of data on. The six that

8:26

they have here have had many, many,

8:28

both animal and human studies in. Many

8:31

cases so that they feel

8:33

confident. That. They have

8:35

estimated. The. Same level of

8:37

these chemicals. That's Elizabeth Sutherland, a

8:40

former E P A Ssl and

8:42

the Office of Water. She told

8:44

me that the new limits are

8:46

a really bulls first step towards

8:48

addressing the peace problem. And while

8:51

we eat, Yea has only focused

8:53

on these six chemicals. The treatments

8:55

our utilities used to remove them

8:57

will also be taking other chemicals

8:59

of concern out of the drinking

9:02

water. All kinds of pesticides, pharmaceuticals,

9:04

personal care products that are unregulated

9:06

now. Under the Safe Drinking Water Act

9:08

but we know have serious health effects

9:10

that this is good and I'm guessing

9:13

that this side benefit of other chemicals

9:15

like you know, pesticides, pharmaceutical you mentioned

9:17

been filtered out has happened in some

9:19

states are ready right? because when I

9:21

was prepping to talk to you I

9:24

read that some states already have limits

9:26

on t fast levels. Yeah, exactly So

9:28

there there are a few states you

9:30

know friend Massachusetts and New Jersey so

9:32

Washington is concerned that have already set

9:35

standards for a how much various. Pieces

9:37

chemicals can be in there drinking

9:39

water as levels do vary by

9:41

state and a few others had

9:43

some regulatory standards. Pending this new

9:45

He p A rule will help

9:48

standardizes next month contaminate levels and

9:50

also establish which chemicals need to

9:52

be filtered out at the national

9:54

level. So how much as implementing

9:56

this new rule gonna cost? Yeah,

9:58

so they eat. The estimates that

10:01

it's gonna cost one point five

10:03

billion dollars each year for water

10:05

companies to comply, and that's for

10:07

every year. Gina: As long as

10:09

they keep signing p Fast and

10:11

the drinking water water utility interests

10:13

actually claimed that it could cost

10:15

much more than that. But these

10:17

figures include ongoing monitoring, meeting, and

10:19

quit man, You know, for instance,

10:21

replacing carbon filters on a regular

10:23

basis? I mean, it does sound

10:25

doable, just very expensive. Yeah, so.

10:27

Where is this money going to complain?

10:29

So c. P A is providing a

10:31

billion dollars in grants to help water

10:34

systems and even private Wow owners conduct

10:36

that initial testing and treatments. That's part

10:38

of this nine billion dollar funding package

10:40

specifically for peace. As for mobile on

10:42

that, in the bi partisan infrastructure law,

10:45

there's also a different source. Companies that

10:47

made these chemicals are on the hook

10:49

for more than ten billion dollars from

10:51

a class action lawsuits that money is

10:53

supposed to get a public water systems

10:56

from his P Sas by it is

10:58

water systems can access as fans. If

11:00

there's been thrown out some those costs may

11:02

eventually get has anti consumer so it might

11:05

start showing up in people's water rates as

11:07

wow. So the people you talk to what

11:09

do they think the long term impacts of

11:11

this decision will be the think it's gonna

11:14

be pretty Cygnus again. I mean that you

11:16

p A says that even though it costs

11:18

one point five billion dollars a year, the

11:21

benefits were equal if not even exceed that

11:23

cost. You know there's gonna be less cancer,

11:25

fewer heart attacks, fewer strokes and breath complications

11:27

in the population of one hundred million people.

11:30

Here's where he p a administrator Michael Reagan

11:32

said. One hundred million people

11:34

will be healthier and safer

11:36

because of this action. The.

11:39

Fact that would prevent thousands of death.

11:41

And reduce tens of thousands of

11:43

serious illnesses and and are beat.

11:45

His lead. Scientist. On T Sas

11:47

for the Natural Resources Defense Council there and

11:50

advocacy groups she shared a similar thought: this

11:52

will protect community that know they have the

11:54

best contamination, have not been able to get

11:56

relief and community that I've never known that

11:58

they have good them. And and will

12:01

be getting really anyway happened for that's really

12:03

good. Now the speculation is just for water

12:05

and if it's in the water, that's probably

12:07

the mean direct way that many people are

12:10

getting exposed to it. But it doesn't address

12:12

the other ways. People might also be getting

12:14

exposed to these athletes and their home products

12:16

are in the food supply or from environmental

12:19

pollution. And again, you know we just wanna

12:21

say we don't know for sure what the

12:23

dangerous levels of exposure are Three these other

12:26

routes. Okay, so does this mean that these

12:28

products we've grown accustomed to will start disappearing?

12:30

I mean I'm I'm happy to give up

12:32

my not stick pans and like get better

12:35

ones. but I'm also not opposed to having

12:37

like you know, the best of both worlds.

12:39

Yeah, well, right now that's up to the

12:41

manufacturers and it's also a question of whether

12:43

states are gonna choose to put in regulations

12:45

at the source. That said, there are a

12:48

few companies that are coming up with helped

12:50

her It is. Nonstick pans can be made

12:52

out a ceramic. many get some of those

12:54

and there are non please ask. Coatings can

12:56

use their food, packaging, rain gear, other products.

12:58

So there is a growing. The civil turns

13:01

out there, and places like the Green

13:03

Science Policy Institute sisters list. I like

13:05

that we ended up hope. Thank

13:07

you so much for bringing the story to share with.

13:10

You log in to you know there's a lot more to come. Before.

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This episode was produced by Berlin Mccloy

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Six inslee paying Rebecca Amberley

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check the fax. Sets.

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On of in his or senior director and Colin

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13:48

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