PFAS: The Coming Storm - WC135 MarApr 2024 - Magazine - Page 9
PFAS: The Coming Storm
LEGAL
PFAS: The Coming Storm
Now that the harmful effects of PFAS are widely known,
what can be done to mitigate the damage?
BY AARON ATCHESON, AIDAN ATCHESON, ELIZABETH GAUDET
S REGULAR READERS of this publication are aware,
PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances), are a class
of thousands of manmade chemicals with a wide variety
of commercial and industrial uses. They are useful due
to their coupled hydrophobic and hydrophilic properties
that allow them to resist water, oils, and stains, and be used to make
products waterproof and non-stick. PFAS chemicals have been
manufactured since the 1940s and can currently be found in products such as insulation, water repellants, non-stick cookware, food
packaging, and firefighting foams.
As useful as they are, PFAS are toxic at levels so low that measurements in parts per quadrillion pose crucial risks to our health.
Research is still ongoing to understand the mechanism of PFAS
toxicity, but there is epidemiological evidence that highlights a correlation between increases in exposure to specific PFAS chemicals
and several health effects, including kidney and testicular cancer,
lower antibody response to some vaccines, changes in liver enzymes,
and decreases in child birth weight. A study conducted by the International Journal of Environmental and Public Health found PFAS
in the blood of 97 pe rcent of Americans tested. The largest issue
with PFAS chemicals is their very strong carbon-fluorine bonds that
make their complete destruction very difficult. When you combine
the pervasiveness of the exposure with the difficulty in dealing with
these substances, the PFAS quandary could become one of our
most pressing environmental issues.
A
Aaron Atcheson
Aidan Atcheson
Elizabeth Gaudet
Aaron Atcheson is a partner with Miller
Thomson LLP in its London, Ont. office, and
is the leader of the firm’s Projects Group.
Aaron practices real estate, environmental,
and business law with an emphasis on
energy and infrastructure projects.
Aidan Atcheson is a Co-op student at the
University of Waterloo studying Biology
with a minor in Management Studies,
with an interest in the biological effects
of environmental toxins.
Elizabeth Gaudet is an
articling student with the Southwestern
Ontario offices of Miller Thomson LLP.
WAT E R C A N A D A . N E T
WATER C AN ADA • M ARCH/APRIL 2024
9
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