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PFAS/forever chemicals
We’re taking action to protect the people, fish, and wildlife of King County from PFAS, a class of human-made toxic chemicals used in a wide range of consumer goods that include food packaging, cosmetics, cookware, upholstery cleaners, carpets, waterproof clothing, firefighting foam, and more. PFAS can harm human health and the environment.
What you can do
PFAS – also known as “forever chemicals” can be harmful to your health. The best way to protect ourselves, and our environment, is to limit and, when possible, eliminate the use of PFAS in the first place. Here are some actions you can take.What we know
PFAS – short for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances – are intentionally designed not to break down naturally. This is why they’re also known as “forever chemicals,” since they can last for hundreds and possibly thousands of years in the environment. There are thousands of different PFAS chemicals, some of which are also called PFOS (perfluorooctane sulfonate), and PFOA (perflurooctanoic acid).
Comic by Public Health—Seattle & King County. Artwork by Amy Camber
Risks to human health
We are still learning more about PFAS every day. Nearly 100 percent of people living in the United States have PFAS in their blood. Studies have shown that PFAS exposures can lead to serious health risks including:
- Increased cholesterol levels/risk of obesity and certain types of cancer
- Increased risk of thyroid disease
- Decreased vaccine response in children
- Reproductive effects, such as decreased fertility, high blood pressure, or pre-eclampsia in pregnant people
- Developmental effects or delays in children, such as low birth weight, accelerated puberty, bone variations, or behavioral changes
- Changes in liver enzymes
- Increased risk of prostate, kidney, and testicular cancer
- Interference with a body’s natural hormones
What we're doing
King County is working to address the effects of PFAS on our community and environment. King County is testing the water from our landfills and wastewater treatment facilities, fish, and soil to understand and measure the scope of PFAS contamination in King County. We are also taking steps to reduce sources of PFAS and pursuing legal action against PFAS producers.
Research, monitoring, and testing
King County, along with our local, state, and federal partners, are conducting testing and monitoring to understand the extent of PFAS contamination in our environment. We are monitoring PFAS in local marine and freshwater fish, and working with agency partners, including the Washington State Department of Health and the Department of Ecology, to monitor and test for PFAS in environments, such as groundwater, streams, and lakes. You can learn more about eating fish caught in Washington lakes, PFAS testing, and proposed drinking water regulations on the Washington State Department of Health’s PFAS website.
Because PFAS in consumer products ends up in our waste, we are also monitoring PFAS in our wastewater and landfills. PFAS are introduced upstream of our treatment plants and enter our wastewater treatment facilities and landfill through various sources, including washing clothes, removing makeup, flushing toilets, using firefighting foam and industrial processes. Wastewater treatment and solid waste landfill facilities are downstream recipients of PFAS and do not produce it.
These efforts will help inform proactive measures to address PFAS and other chemicals of concern in our area. We will provide more information on our testing and study results as that information becomes available.
We are also working with the University of Washington to develop technology that could rapidly detect fluorine, a key element of PFAS, in household items.
Legislation, regulation, and policy
- We are actively participating in the implementation of the Safer Products for Washington law which has been one of the most successful policies to remove PFAS from consumer products in the nation.
- We have supported legislation to remove PFAS from firefighting foams, food packaging, cosmetics and other products and to create PFAS drinking water standards.
- Firefighting foam is a source of PFAS in our environment. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has approved the use of non-PFAS firefighting foam. King County International Airport is working with regional partners to remove PFAS from firefighting trucks and transition to non-PFAS foam. The airport also worked with the FAA to eliminate the need to discharge PFAS-containing foam during flow testing
Legal action
In 2023, King County filed a federal lawsuit against past and current PFAS manufacturers and companies that use the toxic chemicals in a wide range of products, with a focus on the use of PFAS in firefighting foam. King County’s lawsuit seeks to hold manufacturers accountable for the costs and impacts caused by contamination. The County’s complaint maintains that manufacturers – not the public – should pay for investigating, sampling, testing, and assessing the contamination, as well as the costs to install and maintain treatment systems and the cleanup of PFAS contamination in King County, and the costs incurred by the public health system to address health impacts.
Who we're working with
PFAS contamination is a nationwide issue that requires collaboration among many people, including the public, to protect our communities and natural resources. Working with our partners in the business, community, and government sectors, we strive to find innovative solutions to address PFAS exposure. Our partners include:
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
- Washington State Department of Health
- Washington State Department of Ecology
- University of Washington
- Washington Water Trust
- Toxic Free Future
- Zero Waste Washington
- Community partners, including
- Afghan Health Initiative
- Crece Conmigo
- Cultivate South Park
- Mother Africa
- Somali Health Board
- Horn of Africa Services
- Muslimahs Against Abuse Center
- Refugee Federation Services Center
- Community Network Council
- Brightspark
- Tilth Alliance
We also work with local experts in county and tribal health programs, community advocates, and legislators and policymakers to create changes and take actions that reduce exposure to PFAS and other chemicals of concern.
Connection to larger initiatives
Protecting our communities and the environment from PFAS is part of King County’s broader commitment to shaping the health, safety, economy, and environment of the future.
This means being aware of what’s going into our environment and taking action to stop harmful contaminants from entering it in the first place.
We need to address the PFAS that are in the environment today and prevent the continued use of PFAS. We believe you shouldn’t have to be a scientist to know how to keep yourself and your family safe – rather than needing to know which products to avoid, you should be able to shop while knowing that whatever you purchase will be free from toxic chemicals.
That’s why our efforts are bringing together teams from across the county. This includes:
- Public Health’s Environmental Health Services Division, which focuses on identifying and sustaining environmental conditions that promote health equity and healthy people and communities. This includes the work of the Lead & Toxics, Solid Waste, Drinking Water, On-Site Sewage System, and Toxicology programs.
- The Hazardous Waste Management Program, a coalition of local governments working to create a Puget Sound region free from hazardous chemical exposure.
- Multiple teams from the Department of Natural Resources and Parks, who, among many sustainability commitments, are working to protect water quality and habitat, benefiting people, salmon, and orcas, through the Clean Water, Healthy Habitat initiative.
By working together, identifying the sources of PFAS, and preventing their use in the first place, we can protect and promote the well-being of all King County communities and our shared environment.