By The Defender Staff
Scientists Say the Chemicals in Nonstick Pans Could Affect Children for Years to Come
By now, you’re likely familiar with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), also known as “forever chemicals,” which are found in everything from waterproof clothing to nonstick pans. You may also know that researchers are uncovering alarming links between these chemicals and human health, including potential effects such as accelerated biological aging, increased risk of diabetes, and cancer. Now, researchers are finding that these substances may also have an outsized impact on children.
In March, a team of researchers led by the University of North Carolina published their study in the Journal of the Endocrine Society, finding that kids with higher blood levels of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), one of thousands of PFAS compounds, had lower forearm bone density by age 12 than those with low levels. The researchers also examined other PFAS compounds, including perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS), perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS), and perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA); however, these compounds showed more variable results.
To reach this conclusion, the researchers tracked 218 children from a prospective pregnancy and birth cohort, measuring their blood PFAS levels at birth and again at ages 3, 8, and 12 years old, then assessed bone density using imaging technology. They found that bone density was lower by age 12, and that higher PFOA concentrations were consistently linked to lower forearm bone density at every time point measured.
Air Pollution Slows Lung Growth During Childhood, UK Study Shows
Research shows that air pollution is slowing the lung growth of children in the UK. Scientists tracked the lung function of more than 5,000 people who were born in and around Bristol in the 1990s. The health of the Children of the 90s cohort was assessed from birth onwards and their lungs were tested as they grew up, at eight and 15 years old and then as adults, aged 24, when their lung function should have reached its maximum.
Prof Anna Hansell, of the University of Leicester, who led the study, said: “Much of the evidence on health effects of air pollution relates to adults or pregnancy, but we think it’s highly plausible it has impacts on growth and development of children. “Those whose lungs didn’t grow to maximum potential in childhood may be more vulnerable to the respiratory diseases of later life because they have a lower reserve.
They are also more vulnerable to poorer health generally. For instance, low lung function in adults is associated with the same level of risk of heart disease as having high cholesterol. Research has also shown that people whose lung health has been affected by air pollution may be at greater risk of heart disease.”
Australia Sues 3M for $1.4 Billion Over Defense Site PFAS
Australia has sued 3M Co. and its local arm for more than A$2 billion ($1.4 billion) in damages relating to contamination from perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, at 28 defense bases.
The Department of Defense is looking to recover “significant past and future expenses” incurred by investigating and managing contamination resulting from the historic storage and use of 3M’s aqueous film-forming foam, Assistant Minister for Defense Peter Khalil said in a statement Thursday.
So-called forever chemicals are contained in legacy firefighting foams for years, including on Defense sites, the department said. Foams containing PFAS are no longer used in Australia due to concerns linked to environmental contamination, it added.
“The government is committed to holding 3M to account for the economic and environmental harms associated with PFAS contamination,” Attorney General Michelle Rowland said. Defense has spent more than A$1.3 billion so far on its PFAS response.
In Illinois, Cancer and Pesticide Rates Typically Rise Together
Three-fourths of Illinois counties have cancer rates higher than the national average. Those counties also have an average pesticide use rate nearly 25% higher than the state’s other counties. This finding, based on an analysis of data from both the U.S. Geological Survey and the National Cancer Institute, is in line with national figures.
Of the 500 counties nationwide with the highest pesticide and herbicide use per square mile, 60% of those counties also had cancer rates higher than the national average of 460 cases per 100,000 people, according to a recent Investigate Midwest report in partnership with the Pulitzer Center’s StoryReach U.S. Fellowship and the Fund for Investigative Journalism.
In Illinois, the counties with the highest cancer rates are most often in the central part of the state, a high crop-growing region where pesticide and herbicide use is highest.
Judge Permanently Blocks Manhattan Project Radioactive Waste From Wayne Disposal Landfill
A Van Buren Township landfill is barred from accepting shipments of radioactive waste from Manhattan Project-era sites, a Wayne County Circuit Court judge ruled Wednesday. Judge Kevin Cox’s order, issued following a February bench trial, sides with Wayne County and communities that sued Wayne Disposal by making an Aug. 6, 2025 preliminary injunction permanent.
The injunction bars the shipments of elevated radiation waste from sites managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to Wayne Disposal. The hazardous waste facility is owned by Republic Services. The harms from the waste are long-lasting or permanent and cannot be offset with monetary damages, and monitoring and engineering controls at the landfill are insufficient, Cox said.
“Acceptance of any additional FUSRAP TENORM at the WDI Landfill facility would unreasonably interfere with rights common to the public and therefore constitutes a public nuisance,” Cox wrote, referring to elevated radiation waste, known as TENORM, from Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program (FUSRAP) sites managed by the Army Corps.
West Coast Chemical Emergencies Raise Questions About the Safety of Massive Industrial Tanks
There are millions of chemical tanks around the U.S., and experts say it is exceedingly rare for them to fail as long as they are properly maintained and inspected. Yet this past week, there were two major hazardous chemical emergencies on the West Coast.
A large tank containing a corrosive chemical at a Longview, Washington, paper mill ruptured on Tuesday, killing two and possibly nine others. And late last week about 50,000 people were evacuated in Southern California after a chemical tank overheated and threatened the area with a catastrophic explosion. Authorities mitigated that risk, and people have been able to return home.
The incidents have raised questions about who is responsible for regulating companies that handle dangerous materials. An Associated Press review has found that officials at the local, state and federal levels all play a part in keeping these facilities safe.
Check Compliance History of Chemical Facilities in Your Area With EPA’s Interactive Map
Amid rising concerns over whether facilities handling potentially dangerous chemicals are operating near residential neighborhoods, online federal tools can help you learn the enforcement and compliance history of such sites in your area.
The Environmental Protection Agency’s compliance website allows you to enter your ZIP code and view a map of all facilities monitored by the agency. Each location includes detailed information on chemical releases, hazardous waste shipments and any violations.
In Garden Grove, the database shows that in 2024 alone, more than 131,000 pounds of the chemical methyl methacrylate were released or transferred out of the GKN Aerospace facility. Records also show the facility ships out large amounts of hazardous waste in most years and had violations related to generators in 2024. Later that year, those violations were corrected according to the EPA website.
EPA to Create Permitting System for Coal Ash Dumps
EPA moved Wednesday to create an agency-run permitting program for coal ash dumps, part of a broader Trump administration strategy to ease cleanup requirements for the industrial waste stream. The agency reopened the comment period on a 2020 proposal from the first Trump administration to create a system for utilities and coal companies to obtain lifetime permits for ash dump sites.
Under the original proposal, which was never finalized, companies that received the permits would have been shielded from lawsuits alleging violations of groundwater pollution standards or other requirements under EPA’s coal ash rules. While the agency considers comments on all aspects of the 2020 proposal, it signaled in a Federal Register notice Wednesday a particular interest in enabling a speedy permitting process.
“In order to expedite processing permit applications, EPA also requests comment on shortening the deadline for submission of the first tier of permit applications to the effective date of the final permitting rule, which would be six months after publication of the final permitting rule in the Federal Register, and whether this is enough time to compile materials needed for the permit application,” the notice states.
Brazil Prosecutors Sue to Ban Weed Killer Glyphosate
Brazilian prosecutors are suing health agency Anvisa and the federal government to ban the use of top-selling weed killer glyphosate, dealing a potential blow to chemical companies in Latin America’s largest economy. A special division of the prosecutor’s office tasked with protecting workers’ rights filed a lawsuit Friday seeking to ban the registration of products containing glyphosate and its derivatives.
The suit also seeks to prohibit authorization for the production, export, import, sale and use of the active ingredient and its compounds, citing risks to human life, occupational health and the workplace environment. An effective cancellation of glyphosate‘s registration in Brazil would hit companies such as Germany’s Bayer AG and others that have used the active ingredient in some formulations since its patent expired 2000.
Bayer said in a written statement that scientists from regulatory authorities worldwide have repeatedly concluded that glyphosate can be used safely and is not carcinogenic, adding that it is confident that “the scientific facts will prevail during the proceedings.”
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IPAK-EDU is grateful to The Defender as this piece was originally published there and is included in this news feed with mutual agreement. Read More
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