Livelli di contaminazione delle “sostanze chimiche per sempre” in Europa

‘PFAS are toxic and virtually indestructible chemicals used in a wide range of objects, from anti-stick pans to medical implants. ‘Le Monde’ has uncovered the existence of thousands of contaminated sites.’

You can explore the [interactive map created by Le Monde and its partners here.](https://www.lemonde.fr/en/les-decodeurs/article/2023/02/23/forever-pollution-explore-the-map-of-europe-s-pfas-contamination_6016905_8.html)

‘The chemical ingredients that contaminate its waters belong to a family of ultra-toxic substances with names so complex that acronyms have replaced them: per- and polyfluoroalkyl compounds, or PFAS.

Since the late 1940s, these chemicals with unique properties have been used to mass-produce the non-stick, stain-resistant and waterproofing treatments that coat our everyday utensils and textiles, and much more. Teflon, Scotchgard (the popular textile waterproofing agent) and Gore-Tex are made using them. Myriads of objects contain them: carpets, guitar strings, electric vehicle batteries, paints, acne treatments, kebab and fry wrappers, electrical circuit sheathing in airplanes, hip prostheses, and dental floss.

Harmful to health, PFAS could be composed of [several thousands](https://comptox.epa.gov/dashboard/chemical-lists/pfasmaster) or even [several million](https://gitlab.lcsb.uni.lu/eci/pubchem-docs/-/raw/main/pfas-tree/PFAS_Tree.pdf) compounds – no one knows. What they have in common is an indestructible chain of carbon and fluorine atoms brought to the world by 20^(th)-century chemistry, which are the source of both PFAS’ properties but also their persistence in the environment. They are indestructible in nature, and able to travel very long distances, far from the area where they were emitted. They have been dubbed “[forever chemicals](https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/these-toxic-chemicals-are-everywhere-and-they-wont-ever-go-away/2018/01/02/82e7e48a-e4ee-11e7-a65d-1ac0fd7f097e_story.html).”’

Source: [https://www.lemonde.fr/en/les-decodeurs/article/2023/02/23/revealed-the-massive-contamination-of-europe-by-pfas-forever-chemicals_6016906_8.html](https://www.lemonde.fr/en/les-decodeurs/article/2023/02/23/revealed-the-massive-contamination-of-europe-by-pfas-forever-chemicals_6016906_8.html)

‘PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) are a large group of chemicals consisting of approximately 10,000 different compounds. Also referred to as ‘forever chemicals’, their extreme persistence in the environment has been understood for a long time. However, other concerning properties of these compounds have become better understood over the past two decades. These properties that are displayed by certain subgroups of PFAS include:

* potential for bioaccumulation in living organisms;
* high mobility in water, soil and air;
* long-range transport potential; and
* (eco)toxicological effects that impact humans and the environment (BAuA et al., 2023).’

Source: [https://www.eea.europa.eu/en/analysis/publications/pfas-pollution-in-european-waters](https://www.eea.europa.eu/en/analysis/publications/pfas-pollution-in-european-waters)

PFAS pollution has been a topic in Denmark for a long time and it is being monitored and investigated a lot.

Not all EU countries are investigating PFAS as much, so the map might be misleading. Higher or more widespread PFAS pollution could exist in other places, they just do not know it yet.

https://www.eea.europa.eu/en/analysis/publications/pfas-pollution-in-european-waters

Why is Rotterdam so heavily polluted?

What’s up with Finland?

Also known as the wealth by square kilometer map.