Birdsong in Minnesota and Wisconsin ceases as tree swallows fail to successfully hatch eggs. In coastal North Carolina, skin lesions and infected wounds appear all over the alligators of the Cape Fear River basin. Crayfish in the waters of northern Michigan scarcely forage for their food.
What links these events together?
PFAS, or per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances, constitute thousands of different synthetic chemicals. From pizza boxes to nonstick cookware to raincoats, PFAS has many uses across many industries for its ability to repel water—and it’s a known environmental toxicant.
PFAS does not break down naturally in the environment; it accumulates. Researchers have found significant levels of PFAS compounds all across the globe in various environments, including the atmosphere, aquatic environments, groundwater, drinking water, soil, and more.
Substances that persist and accumulate in the environment are extremely difficult to remove. That’s why any event releasing large amounts of PFAS is especially harmful—once released, these chemicals are likely to remain in the environment for a long time.
Many kinds of AFFF (a foam which firefighters use to extinguish flammable liquid fires) include PFAS.
In 2008, AFFF containing PFAS escaped from the grounds of the San Antonio International Airport into Salado Creek. Notably, this creek feeds into the Edwards Aquifer, which is the main source of drinking water for the San Antonio region.
PFAS contamination in drinking water is frightening when many studies show that higher PFAS levels in local drinking water correlate with increased regional rates of cancer, particularly kidney and testicular cancer. Scientists have even estimated that PFAS found in drinking water likely causes over 6,800 cancer cases per year.
Studies focusing on firefighters’ exposure to PFAS have revealed increased rates of colon, prostate, and testicular cancers. High incidences of cancer and cancer-related deaths in firefighters aren’t surprising with the way Firefighter Travis Temarantz described his experiences with the foam to WHYY: “You were covered in [the foam], regardless of in your gear or not, and you had it on your hands, it was on your face, the wind would blow back, you would be breathing it in.”
Across the board, PFAS negatively impacts human health. In addition to its carcinogenic properties, PFAS is also associated with higher blood cholesterol levels and even worsen the efficacy of vaccines by lowering antibody production.
Furthermore, PFAS undeniably harms the environment. Besides tree swallows, alligators, and crayfish, an array of research displays more of its harmful effects, from thyroid disruption in seals to devastating animal livestock and crops.
In 2024, a group of farmers in Johnson County, a county on the southwestern edges of the DFW metropolis, filed a lawsuit against Synagro Corporations. The suit alleged that Synagro’s biosolids fertilizer contained PFAS, which two plaintiffs said, “rendered [their property] worthless and will be costly and difficult to clean up and restore.” Eventually, the county was forced to declare a state of emergency due to dangerously high levels of PFAS contamination in the soil.
Rep. Helen Kerwin, R-Cleburne, introduced House Bill 1674, which requires regular testing for PFAS in fertilizers. With significant bipartisan support, over seventy House representatives signed onto the bill as co-authors; however, the bill missed legislative deadlines and was unable to advance past committee. In the past legislative session, many Texas bills addressing PFAS did not make it to or through committee, including House Bill 3738 by Rep. Joanne Shofner, R-Nacogdoches, which would have tested if PFAS were present in school cafeteria lunches.
SB 1898, a bill to ban the use of PFAS in firefighting foams except in emergencies, passed through the Senate but ran out of time before the House could vote on it.
Despite bipartisan support for many of these bills in the 2025 legislative session, none have actually passed. With an increasing number of cases such as the Johnson County farmers, as well as study-upon-study underscoring the dangers of PFAS exposure, the lack of state action is both detrimental and astounding for an issue as well-documented as this one.
Time and time again, PFAS have proven themselves to be public health hazards and harmful environmental contaminants. Legislative leaders must work with greater urgency to protect their citizens and the environment from these environmental toxicants. If they do not, the environment and the communities within it will face even greater consequences at the hands of PFAS.
