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A Data Warehouse for Water Quality Data Accessibility in the Great Lakes
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Scientists are building a database to track harmful chemicals called PFAS in the Great Lakes, which provide drinking water to millions of people. These "forever chemicals" have been found at concerning levels in all the Great Lakes due to decades of industrial pollution, potentially threatening human health. The new system will help researchers, government officials, and communities better understand where these toxins are located and how to clean them up.
The Great Lakes are the backbone of the economy of eight inland coastal states (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin) in the United States of America. This freshwater source provides unique opportunities for industrial development and recreational activities, which in turn depend critically on the quality of the water. Decades of industrial activities have resulted in the release of PFAS (Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances) into these freshwater sources, prompting an immediate threat to their sustained operation due to potential human health concerns and ecotoxicological impacts. Recent monitoring and research studies report that all the Great Lakes have concerning levels of PFAS requiring immediate attention. While extensive research has been conducted on water quality, the availability of data sources is not within the reach of many researchers, planners, developers, legislators and policy makers. This research aims to develop a data warehouse that will provide scientific and non-scientific communities with essential information and data related to the presence of PFAS and their sources and spatiotemporal trends. The data warehouse will serve as a repository of data (such as information on events, PFAS compounds, precipitation, microplastics, transport, time, and location; chemical formula and safety datasheets; datasets; and scientific research articles and reports) and fact and dimension tables that will store pertinent PFAS data for water research communities. With this data stored in one application, community members will be able to investigate and recommend better solutions to the challenges related to PFAS presence and remediation in the Great Lakes Basin. This research and the data warehouse development steps will also address the knowledge and data gaps that are not typically addressed by other modeling approaches.
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Revisiting the “forever chemicals”, PFOA and PFOS exposure in drinking water
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Researchers reviewed 180 years of evidence on PFOA and PFOS — two of the most detected 'forever chemicals' (PFAS) in drinking water — finding that contamination rates increased sharply between 2018 and 2019, and that many developing countries still lack the regulations or technology to address the problem. The review calls for stronger global monitoring systems and improved filtration technologies to protect drinking water supplies.
PFAS Data Hub: An open data portal featuring geovisualisation
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The PFAS Data Hub is an open, automatically updated portal compiling European PFAS contamination data from multiple sources with an interactive geovisualization tool, building on the Forever Pollution Project dataset. As PFAS and microplastics often co-occur in contaminated environments, this resource supports cross-disciplinary research into persistent chemical pollution affecting ecosystems and human health.
The magnetic removal of PFAS from water − from molecules to microplastics
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Scientists have developed tiny magnetic particles that can grab onto "forever chemicals" (PFAS) and even microplastics in water, then be pulled out with a magnet, removing up to 95% of contamination. This matters because PFAS are linked to health problems like cancer and hormone disruption, and current water treatment struggles to filter them out, especially at low levels; this reusable magnetic approach worked in real-world settings like drinking water, river water, and wastewater, suggesting a practical path toward cleaner water for communities dealing with PFAS pollution.
Poly- and Perfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS): Do They Matter to Aquatic Ecosystems?
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This review examines PFAS, the persistent 'forever chemicals' widely used in consumer products, and their growing threat to aquatic ecosystems. Evidence indicates that PFAS accumulate in aquatic organisms, disrupt hormones, and can alter how other pollutants behave in the environment. The research is relevant to microplastic concerns because PFAS are commonly found in plastic products and can leach from microplastics into water.
Research Progress in Current and Emerging Issues of PFASs’ Global Impact: Long-Term Health Effects and Governance of Food Systems
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This review covers per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), commonly called "forever chemicals," which are found in food, cosmetics, drinking water, and are linked to microplastic contamination. Decades of corporate delay and mismanagement have led to widespread human exposure with potential long-term health effects being studied across the globe. The authors examine PFAS levels in food and water from multiple countries and call for stronger regulations to protect public health.
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