EPA report finds 'forever chemicals' in fertilizer

EPA study shows toxic forever chemicals in farm fertilizers, drawing questions about regulations

What you probably already know: The Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday issued a new study warning that “forever chemicals” in fertilizer used on many factory farms presents a significant human health risk. The chemicals, called PFOS or PFAS, come from manufacturing and industrial facilities, as well as common household cookware, and then make their way into sewage sludge that is often used to fertilize crops both in the U.S. and overseas. PFAS have been linked to cancer and do not break down in the body or the environment, so can continue to contaminate farmland forever.

Why? The EPA currently regulates the levels of heavy metals such as mercury in sewage sludge that is used as fertilizer, but does not regulate PFAS in the same way. This new report, though, could result in new requirements. The Biden Administration has made PFAS contamination a priority and set limits on the levels allowed in drinking water last year. Exposure to PFAS has been connected to developmental delays in children and decreased fertility in women, as well as some cancers.

What it means: Some states have already begun testing for PFAS in farmland. Dozens of dairy farms in Maine have been contaminated, and ranchers in Texas recently sued a sludge fertilizer company after discovering PFAS in the soil of their ranches next door to where the sludge was applied. The EPA report suggests the federal government could consider regulation of PFAS via the Clean Water Act and is considering that action.

What happens now? It’s unclear how the Trump Administration will respond to these findings, as some Republican leaders have pushed hard for more regulations of these toxic chemicals. Trump’s pick for health secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has pushed for more federal efforts to clean up the public water supply, but Trump himself has bucked against these kinds of federal regulations, particularly by agencies such as the EPA.