LONG ISLAND, NY — Long Islanders are among 89.3 million people nationwide who have drinking water that has tested positive for toxic “forever chemicals,” known collectively as PFAS, according to new data from the US Environmental Protection Agency.
In April, the EPA finalized basic drinking water standards that set strict limits for PFOA and PFOS, two of the most toxic of all chemicals. In the most recent round of testing, at least one of 29 types of PFAS was found in a third of the 4,750 public water systems tested in 2023 and 2024.
According to the EPA, 174 public water systems in New York tested positive for PFAS.
An analysis of PFAS data by the Environmental Working Group that includes the new test results shows a concentration of affected water systems in Nassau County on Long Island — with other areas in Suffolk County, including Riverhead and Hampton Bays. Another spot in Suffolk County with drinking water above the recommended limit is Hauppauge. Across New York, affected systems also include parts of Woodbury, Newburgh, Pleasant Valley, Fishkill and upstate New York, the map shows.
Many have worked in recent years to address the problems. Rep. Nick Lalotta, who represents New York's District 1, voted to pass the military construction and veterans affairs appropriations bill last week. The bill includes several provisions authored by LaLota, including cleaning up the former Grumman site in Calverton. Its goal is to accelerate PFAS remediation efforts at closed military facilities where PFAS contamination affects local drinking water, including the former Grumman site in Calverton.
The true extent of PFAS contamination in public drinking water supplies is likely much higher, as the latest tests were done on only one-third of the water systems that serve 90 percent of the US population.
Any public water utility with more than 3,000 customers must test for the 29 individual PFAS chemicals between now and 2026. The new rules require public water utilities to eventually reduce PFAS to near-zero levels.
The rule is the first national drinking water limit for toxic PFASs, which are widespread, long-lived in the environment and have been linked to cancer and a host of other health problems. They are ubiquitous, found in everything from food packaging and cookware to dental floss and other personal care items to children's toys and firefighting foams.
Water providers are entering a new era with significant additional health standards that the EPA says will make tap water safer for millions of consumers — a priority of the Biden administration. The agency also proposed requiring utilities to remove dangerous lead pipes.
Utility groups warn the rules would cost tens of billions of dollars each and hit small communities with fewer resources the hardest. Legal challenges are sure to follow. EPA Administrator Michael Regan said in April that the rule is the most significant action the EPA has ever taken on PFAS.
“The result is a comprehensive, life-changing rule, one that will improve the health and vitality of so many communities across our country,” Reagan said at the time.
Environmental and health advocates praised the rule, but said PFAS manufacturers knew decades ago that the substances were dangerous, yet hid or downplayed the evidence. The limits should have come earlier, they argue.
“Reducing PFAS in our drinking water is the most cost-effective way to reduce our exposure,” said Scott Faber, food and water expert at the Environmental Working Group. “It's much harder to reduce other exposures, like PFAS in food or clothing or carpets.”
The EPA has dramatically changed its health guidelines for forever chemicals in recent years as more research on health harms has emerged. Less than a decade ago, the EPA issued a health advisory stating that levels of PFOA and PFOS combined should not exceed 70 parts per trillion. Now, the agency says no amount is safe.
The Associated Press contributed to this post.
