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Why is High Persistence Alone a Major Cause of Concern?
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This review examined why high environmental persistence alone is a major concern for chemicals, finding that persistent substances distribute globally, accumulate to higher concentrations than short-lived chemicals, and pose long-term risks that are difficult to reverse once contamination occurs.
High persistence (environmental degradation half-lives of several years or more) has important implications for the behavior of chemicals in the environment. Persistent chemicals are distributed widely, often globally, and reach (much) higher concentrations than short-lived chemicals emitted at the same rate. We illustrate these features of highly persistent chemicals using a unit-world environmental fate model. Over the last decades, persistent chemicals such as polychlorinated biphenyls and poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances have caused serious impacts on the environment and human health. We argue that high persistence should be given particular emphasis in chemicals assessment and management and that highly persistent chemicals should be regulated on the basis of their persistence alone (P-sufficient approach)
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Why is high persistence alone a major cause of concern?
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This paper argues that persistence alone — the ability of a chemical to resist degradation in the environment — should be treated as a major hazard concern in chemical regulation, even without established toxicity data. The argument is directly relevant to microplastics, which are highly persistent and accumulate in ecosystems over time.
Fate, distribution, and transport dynamics of Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFASs) in the environment
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This review examines how PFAS, often called "forever chemicals," move through water, soil, plants, and air, with their ultra-strong carbon-fluorine bonds making them nearly indestructible in nature. While focused on PFAS rather than microplastics specifically, the two pollutants often co-occur and share similar concerns about persistence, bioaccumulation, and potential health effects.
The High Persistence of PFAS is Sufficient for their Management as a Chemical Class
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This perspective argues that the extreme environmental persistence of all per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) — stemming from their resistant perfluoroalkyl moieties — is alone sufficient justification to phase out all non-essential uses of the entire chemical class. The authors warn that continued PFAS release leads to irreversible accumulation, and that remediation of contaminated land and drinking water is already proving technically challenging and costly.
The high persistence of PFAS is sufficient for their management as a chemical class
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Researchers argue that the extreme environmental persistence of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) is reason enough to regulate them as a single chemical class and phase out all non-essential uses. Because PFAS contain perfluoroalkyl groups that resist virtually all forms of environmental and biological breakdown, their continued release leads to irreversibly increasing concentrations in the environment. The study warns that once harmful effects are confirmed, reversing PFAS contamination will be extremely difficult and costly for society.
Addressing the importance of microplastic particles as vectors for long-range transport of chemical contaminants: perspective in relation to prioritizing research and regulatory actions
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This perspective examined the role of microplastic particles as vectors for long-range environmental transport of persistent organic pollutants (POPs), concluding that while microplastics can adsorb and carry chemical contaminants, their relative contribution to POP transport compared to other pathways requires further investigation before regulatory prioritization.
Research digests by email
When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.