EPA sets limits for 6 PFAS in drinking water

To help protect people from harmful per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and ensure access to clean drinking water, the US Environmental Protection Agency has finalized tough new limits for six PFAS in drinking water. The standard, announced April 10 , will "reduce PFAS exposure for approximately 100 million people, prevent thousands of deaths, and reduce tens of thousands of serious illnesses," the EPA says. For two of the most commonly found and most toxic PFAS—perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS)—the EPA set a limit of 4 parts per trillion each, the same level it proposed last year . The chemicals aren't produced in the US anymore, but they were used in numerous consumer products for decades and still contaminate many drinking-water supplies. For three additional PFAS—perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA), perfluorohexanesulfonic acid (PFHxS), and hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid (HFPO-DA, used in Chemours's GenX product )—the EPA capped levels at 10 parts