Environmental protection groups have been vocal for years about the dangers the contamination of farmlands by the toxic per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) poses. For example, the Environmental Working Group (EWG) estimates that nearly 20 million acres of cropland across the country, especially in states like Texas, could be contaminated by PFAS.
PFAS are thousands of synthetic chemicals widely used since the 1950s to produce food packaging, heat-resistant and non-stick products, water-repellant clothing, firefighting foam, pesticides, and many more items. They enter the environment, including farm ecosystems, mainly through wastewater and water sources. From polluted waste-, ground- and surface water, PFAS ends up in crops and the bloodstream of people and livestock. Commonly, on farms, the sources of PFAS are fertilizers known as sewage sludge or biosolids. Biosolids are leftovers from wastewater processing and are used as fertilizers in nearly every state in the country, including Texas.
PFAS are called “forever chemicals” as they are extraordinarily resistant to the environment and tend to build up in the bodies of people and animals. Farmers who work and live on highly contaminated land have shown very high levels of PFAS in their blood. This is something to take seriously, as PFAS are provenly linked to adverse health conditions, most worryingly cancers, mainly breast, ovarian, prostate, thyroid, and kidney cancers. Despite the seriousness of the problem, until today, no federal regulation guarantees that livestock and food produced on farms are free of the carcinogenic PFAS.
The contamination of farmlands with the "forever chemicals" has only gained attention by policymakers and the media in the past couple of years, when several dairy farms in Maine had to be shut down due to critically high PFAS levels found in their products. The Relief for Farmers Hit with PFAS Act, reintroduced to the Senate in March 2023, proposes establishing a $500 million federal grant program to help farmers impacted by PFAS contamination. More than ever, the Bill needs to become law and be a catalyst for stronger state and federal PFAS regulations. Farmers struggling with this invisible adversary need all the support they can get.
In March 2024, 49 Texas public water utility systems reported that the levels of PFAS in their water exceeded the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) recommended limits set in March 2023 for five “forever chemicals”. For instance, one such water utility system serves the City of Edinburg located in the Rio Grande Valley. The level of PFOS detected in this water system exceeded 4 parts per trillion (ppt). 4 ppt is the maximum contamination level (MCL) set by the EPA for PFOA and PFOS, the two known carcinogenic types of PFAS. The likelihood that farms near such water systems in the state have been contaminated with these dangerous chemicals is high. Indeed, there are many farmlands in the Rio Grande Valley. Being a river delta, the region is an important agricultural area, mainly known for its citrus and vegetable production, as well as cotton and maize, crops that might grow on PFAS-contaminated land.
Other regions and farmlands across Texas are also affected. In 2023, the Department of Defense (DOD) warned almost 4,000 farms that they were at risk for PFAS contamination from nearby military facilities, where groundwater at the base contained these toxic chemicals. The list included the former Reese Air Force Base near Lubbock city in Texas, where the DOD detected very high levels of both PFOA and PFOS. The primary source of PFAS pollution at military sites is aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF), a type of firefighting foam used by the DOD and civilian fire departments against flammable fuel fires since the late 1960s. Also, a report from February 2024 warns that PFAS coming from biosolids caused the death of livestock on farms in Johnson County, Texas. Laboratory tests revealed incredibly high levels of PFAS in the farms' soil, ponds, and water wells. For example, one of the ponds had over 1,333 ppt of PFAS, and the liver of a stillborn calf tested at 610,000 ppt of PFOS.
PFAS contamination of farmlands is a challenge for farmers. It jeopardizes the selling of farm products, endangers the health of farm owners and workers, and leads to extreme financial losses. Sometimes, the owners are unaware of the PFAS problem on their lands and potentially risk bringing contaminated products into the marketplace. Even though these are serious challenges and are embedded into a PFAS-linked national crisis, the contamination of farmlands remains a neglected aspect.
Some states have strict regulations or bans on biosolids, but Texas has none. The fact that there are lawsuits in the state involving farmers suing Synagro Technologies shows how urgently we need clear guidelines and regulatory frameworks to tackle the contamination of farmlands across Texas.
The Department of Agriculture would administer the Relief for Farmers Hit with PFAS Act and allow states to allocate funds to farmers and commercial farms where the soil and water contain levels of PFAS determined unsafe by the EPA. Producers could get financial assistance for remediation, developing alternative ways of production, PFAS testing, and health monitoring of those living or working on the farms. If voted to become law, this Act would be critical for the survival of impacted farms and the integrity of our food supply.
Editor's Note: The above guest column was penned by Stan Gottfredson, CEO of Atraxia Law, a paralegal firm based in San Diego, California, that assists individuals affected by toxic exposure.
