Read the full article by Joshua Bote (Times Telegram)

“A study released Wednesday by an environmental watchdog group found heightened levels of potentially toxic chemicals in tap water supplies serving dozens of major American cities.

The report, published by the Environmental Working Group, found that 20 cities and regions nationwide — including Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, Miami and Louisville, Kentucky — contained PFAS levels of at least 10 parts per trillion. Forty-three areas, including New York City, Nashville, Las Vegas and Sacramento, had detectable PFAS at least 1 part per trillion.

Only one city, Meridian, Mississippi, which uses well water 700 feet below the surface, found no PFAS, while Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and Seattle had levels lower than the 1 part per trillion limit advised by the EWG…

EWG’s work expanded on data from an EPA program that ended in 2015, analyzing water samples using an EPA-approved independent laboratory for a larger set of PFAS compounds…

‘EWG endorses a health-based drinking water guideline of 1 (part per trillion) for all PFAS to be protective of children’s health,’ said co-author Sydney Evans, a science analyst with the EWG, in an emails to USA TODAY, citing research that suggests vaccines may be less effective on children with high levels of PFAS.

The EPA currently has a non-enforceable limit of PFAS levels at 70 parts per trillion, but has not yet established a ‘maximum contaminant level’ that can be enforced by federal and local governments…

The highest concentrations, which exceeded the EPA’s guidelines, were found in Brunswick County in North Carolina and in the Quad Cities region of Iowa and Illinois at rates surpassing 100 parts per trillion…

Five states — Massachusetts, Minnesota, Michigan, New Jersey and Vermont — have established maximum contaminant levels, while six others, including Washington, California and New York, have proposed regulations.

Notably, many states’ maximum contaminant levels, including Minnesota’s current regulations and New York’s proposed limits, are far stricter than the EPA guidelines, hovering around the 10 to 20 parts per trillion mark…”