England’s waterways and farms are to be monitored for ‘forever chemicals’ under a new Government plan to get a grip on the harmful substances.
This week ministers will unveil proposals to tackle per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a family of more than 10,000 chemicals used in everyday products that have been linked to a variety of health problems in humans.
The i Paper has called on the Government to publish a strategy for dealing with ‘forever chemicals’ as part of its Save Britain’s Rivers campaign.
Environmental groups have welcomed plans to boost monitoring of PFAS, but say the Government’s strategy will be a “let down” if it doesn’t include plans to ban some chemicals as is already being done in European countries.
Experts are becoming increasingly concerned about the prevalence of PFAS in our environment and bodies.
The substances are used in a range of products – including clothing, cookware and cosmetics – and have been nicknamed ‘forever chemicals’ as it can take them centuries to break down in soil or water.
Some PFAS are toxic and have been linked to health problems, including cancer, pregnancy complications, and suppressed immune systems.
Forever chemicals are also seeping into Britain’s waterways; not a single river in England is assessed as being in ‘good’ chemical health, meaning substances are having a harmful impact on aquatic species.
Since Brexit, the UK has fallen behind the EU when it comes to regulating PFAS.
The EU monitors a wider range of substances and is currently considering a full ban of forever chemicals.
Some European countries have already introduced tough policies, including France and Denmark, which have introduced bans on the sale of cosmetics and clothes made with PFAS.
But the UK Government has dragged its feet on introducing new restrictions. The previous Conservative Government promised to publish a chemicals strategy but it was repeatedly delayed.
This week’s long-awaited PFAS strategy is expected to outline how the Environment Agency will boost its monitoring of chemicals in waterways and soil.
This will include a multi-year assessment of PFAS contamination in England’s estuaries and coastlines, The i Paper understands.
As part of the project, the EA will collect sampes of sediment, fish and invertebrates from major estuaries to analyse for a range of PFAS compounds.
The EA will also look to improve the monitoring of PFAS in soils at an initial five pilot locations across England.
It will build on existing work from the regulator, which has seen it identify over 10,000 PFAS ‘problem sites’ across England, including next to industrial sites, sewage treatment works and airports.
Under the strategy the EA will also commit to making a ‘PFAS map’ available to all public sector bodies across England by the end of 2026.
It’s currently unclear whether the Government’s strategy will include any move towards an EU-style ban of PFAS.
Rob Collins, director of policy and science at the Rivers Trust, said the strategy will be a “let down” without this.
“We already know they’re everywhere and they’re extremely harmful to both humans and the environment,” he said.
Megan Kirton, senior project officer at the environmental charity Fidra, said “monitoring, research and understanding the impacts of PFAS is important”, but “not the solution we most urgently need”, calling for an EU-style restriction on all non-essential PFAS uses.
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The call to restrict PFAS uses has been echoed by health charities, including Breast Cancer UK, as well as Water UK, which represents the water industry.
The Environment Minister Emma Hardy said the Government “is taking strong action to combat ‘forever chemicals’”.
“Under our new PFAS plan, we will build a clearer picture of the risks facing England’s estuaries and coastal waters. This decisive action will help protect the health of our natural world for years to come,” she said.
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