Opinion: Toxic chemicals are everywhere. California can limit our exposure
Most parents take extra precautions to protect their children from toxic chemicals — from locking cabinets of cleaning supplies to scrutinizing ingredient labels. But some toxic chemicals are near impossible to limit their exposure to. California can change that. Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS, are a class of over 9,000 industrial compounds that are added to everyday products to repel stains, water or oil. … Commonly referred to as “forever chemicals,” they do not break down in the environment — ever. … According to the nonprofit Environmental Working Group, these chemicals may be contaminating the drinking water of up to 200 million Americans.
-Written by Rebecca Fuoco, science communications officer at the Green Science Policy Institute; and Arlene Blum, founder and executive director of the Green Science Policy Institute and a research associate in the Cell and Molecular Biology Department at UC Berkeley.
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