Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, also known as PFAS, are chemicals characterized by long fluorinated carbon chains. They have been used for decades throughout various industries due to their excellent resistance to heat and liquids. These strong carbon fluorine bonds extend the lifetime of the chemical’s breakdown, and with industries washing chemicals into rivers and streams, as well as chemicals from household products washing down the drain, PFAS poses a health hazard to humans and the environment. While the study of these hazards is still ongoing, PFAS exposure has been linked to certain cancers. PFAS have been detected in drinking water across the country, but there has been less monitoring of private wells, especially in Iowa. This research study aims to analyze and determine the levels of PFAS contamination in private wells along the Mississippi River. Water samples collected from the Mississippi River and nearby homes sourcing their drinking from groundwater wells, analyzed for 25 different PFAS compounds using EPA Method 533, solid phase extraction (SPE) and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). PFAS chemicals were detected in the Mississippi River and a majority of the private well samples. Some homes had levels of PFOA and PFOS as high as 20 ppt, five times the proposed EPA drinking water limit. These results show Iowans living along the Mississippi River are at risk from PFAS exposure and more monitoring is needed for private well users to accurately capture human health risk.
