几十年来,, chemical manufacturers knew that the substances known collectively as PFAS were hazardous to human health. 他们向公众和联邦监管机构隐瞒了他们所知道的事情.
全氟烷基和多氟烷基物质 (PFAS) are a class of synthetic compounds prized for their ability to repel oil, grease, 和 water. 的se qualities have led to their use in everything from nonstick cookware to stain-resistant carpets to firefighting foam. PFAS are extremely persistent in the environment 和 human body—meaning they do not break down 和 can accumulate—和 全国生物监测结果 indicate that nearly all Americans carry trace amounts of PFAS in their bodies. 这种暴露是由于 非常广泛的污染 of drinking water 和 groundwater supplies by PFAS manufacturers 和 by military bases 和 airports using PFAS-containing firefighting foams, 以及它们在家用产品中的使用.
有毒威胁:军事基地的PFAS污染
尽管这些化学物质无处不在, health problems linked to PFAS have only become public knowledge in recent years. 公众本可以在几十年前就知道这些危险, 然而, 有 chemical companies chosen not to bury or spin their own internal research.
Indeed, health problems linked to PFAS only began to be revealed when, in 1998, 俄亥俄州律师罗布·比洛特说 接手一个叫帕克斯堡的人的案子, 西弗吉尼亚州的一个家庭，他们的牛患上了无法解释的疾病. Bilott’s work ultimately led to the release of thous和s of documents from the chemical company 杜邦公司, whose 全氟辛酸及其盐类(PFOA)-producing Washington Works plant was located in Parkersburg (全氟辛酸及其盐类(PFOA), 曾经用来制造聚四氟乙烯, 是最古老的PFAS品种之一). 的 文件显示 that 杜邦公司 有 concealed decades’ worth of internal research from that linked 全氟辛酸及其盐类(PFOA) to negative health effects as well as concealed testing results that found the chemical in the local water supply.
In the 1960s, for example, 杜邦公司 researchers found 全氟辛酸及其盐类(PFOA) could increase liver size in 动物. 根据 纽约时报, 其他文件显示，到20世纪90年代, 该公司知道全氟辛酸及其盐类(PFOA)会导致多种癌症肿瘤. 该公司 没有分享 它的知识与公众, 监管机构, 甚至大部分是自己的工人, 谁会面临癌症的高水平和可能性 生下有先天缺陷的孩子以及其他健康影响.
杜邦公司 was not the only company to engage in such corporate disinformation. 2018年初, the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office released documents showing that the chemical company 3M 有 also 隐藏和淡化 几十年来人们一直在关注PFAS的危害. 3M, which invented 全氟辛酸及其盐类(PFOA) 和 used another variety of PFAS called 卵圆孔未闭 in its popular product Scotchgard, 有 在20世纪70年代进行617888九五至尊娱乐研究 这显示了化学物质的毒性, 但 did not turn over any of its science to the Environmental Protection Agency for more than 20 years. 该公司 also softened its various findings on PFAS when submitting to publications, 并聘请了约翰·盖西教授, 全氟化学品专家, 保持PFAS617888九五至尊娱乐公司的友好关系. 据报道 截距, Geisy “helped 3M spin the science on [PFAS] in the company’s favor even as he presented himself as an independent scientist.”
这两个 3M 和 杜邦公司 have paid out hundreds of millions in legal settlements since their internal machinations have come to light, as 617888九五至尊娱乐研究表明 全氟辛酸及其盐类(PFOA), 卵圆孔未闭, 以及其他类型的PFAS对健康的影响，包括睾丸癌, 肾癌, 哮喘和甲状腺疾病的风险也会增加. 然而，联邦政府对PFAS的监管进展缓慢, even as the evidence of dangers from the chemicals keeps building (despite the 特朗普政府的企图 阻止政府自己的报告), 和 even as chemical companies increasingly produce new varieties of PFAS—which they claim are safer than the old types, 但 哪些证据表明可能不是. For communities hit hardest by PFAS contamination—those that live near PFAS-producing plants 和 those that 住在军事基地或军事基地附近—the uncovering of corporate disinformation 和 related government action has been too little, 太迟了.
进一步的阅读
相关资源
对617888九五至尊娱乐的攻击
