Mass Rural Water Association
781 Millers Falls Road, Northfield, MA 01360
Phone: 413-498-5779
Fax: 413-498-9943
Informtion about Per - and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) in drinking water
What are PFAS and how are people exposed to them?
PFAS are fluorinated organic chemicals. Two PFAS chemicals, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS)have been the most extensively produced and studied of these chemicals. PFAS are contained in firefighting foams, which have been used in training exercises and to extinguish oil and gas fires at a variety of locations including airfields. PFAS are also used in a number of industrial processes and have been used to make carpets, clothing, fabrics for furniture, paper packaging for food and other materials (e.g., cookware) that are resistant to water, grease or stains. Because these chemicals have been used in many consumer products, most people have been exposed to them. While consumer products and food are the largest source of exposure to these chemicals for most people, drinking water can be an additional source of exposure in communities where these chemicals have contaminated water supplies. Such contamination is typically localized and associated with a specific facility, for example, an airfield at which they were used for firefighting or a facility where these chemicals were produced or used.
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781 Millers Falls Road, Northfield, MA 01360
Phone: 413-498-5779
Fax: 413-498-9943