PFAS found in America’s lakes and streams

Original Report by Environment America.

America’s rivers, lakes and streams are vital ecosystems and are places where people swim, paddle and fish. Many provide water we drink. Contaminants in these waterways can harm us directly when we drink or recreate in the water, and sometimes indirectly, when pollutants accumulate in fish that we eat. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), often called “forever chemicals,” are among the water pollutants that can put our health and the environment at risk.

An analysis of federal, state and non-profit testing data show between 2022 and 2024, PFAS were detected at 83% out of 1,602 locations tested across the United States. These results are a subset of all PFAS testing that has taken place across the country. And the contamination they reveal is likely just the tip of the iceberg, as many waterways are not tested for PFAS at all.

What are PFAS and why are they a problem?

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), are a class of synthetic chemicals that persist in the environment for decades. Because they break down very slowly, PFAS can accumulate in the environment and in the human body over time. Long-term exposure to certain PFAS has been associated with an increased risk of some cancers, immune system suppression, reproductive and developmental effects, and other adverse health outcomes. Once released into the environment, PFAS can persist in rivers, lakes and streams, where they may remain dissolved in the water and accumulate in sediment and aquatic organisms.

Separate from the surface water data examined in this report, there is also significant evidence of PFAS accumulating in freshwater fish, which scientists are now calling a potentially significant source of forever chemicals in our bodies. 

Despite growing concern about PFAS contamination, relatively little is known about how widespread these chemicals are in America’s surface waters. This analysis examined PFAS monitoring data collected from rivers, lakes, streams and other surface waters between 2022 and 2024, drawing primarily on data from the EPA’s Water Quality Portal (WQP) and additional monitoring data generously shared by Waterkeeper Alliance and its network of local Waterkeeper groups and state agencies in Maine and Massachusetts. (See methodology for more details.)

Across the United States, PFAS were detected at least once at 1,329 of 1,602 monitored locations at rivers, lakes, streams and other surface waters between 2022 and 2024. As many as 114 different PFAS compounds were detected at one or more water testing locations.

Because PFAS monitoring remains limited in many parts of the country and not all PFAS monitoring results nationally are reported through the WQP, these findings likely represent only a portion of existing contamination.

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Wayne Creed

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