It’s a curious acronym — PFAS — and it stands for a family of chemicals that’s in most homes and being detected in an increasing number of people’s water systems in Michigan and other states and provinces. “Forever Chemicals” is what PFAS, PFOA and PFOS are all known as because of how long it takes them to break down in people’s bodies and the environment. These groups of industrial chemicals are used in many non-stick household products, food packages and waterproofed outdoor clothing. And research is only beginning to determine the health effects and what, if any, treatment there might be.
What can people do to protect themselves and their families? How are federal, state and local governments responding? What responsibility does industry have? And what are the financial, medical and social costs?
Great Lakes Now’s coverage has explored these issues and more. Find our work and our partners’ reporting on this page.
Watch NOW
Five fixes for Michigan’s drinking water woes
The Great Lakes News Collaborative asked state and national experts how Michigan could break the cycle of underfunding and poor decision-making that has left water systems across Michigan in sorry shape.
PFAS News Roundup: 20M acres of farmland polluted, PFAS found in ‘nontoxic’ children’s clothes and car seats
Catch the latest updates on what’s happening with PFAS in Great Lakes Now’s biweekly headline roundup.
Indiana Finance Authority COO Testifies at House Drinking Water Hearing
Finance Authority chief says Congress should consider funding changes to better address the state’s PFAS and lead issues.
Water woes loom for Michigan suburbs, towns after decades of disinvestment
Michigan cities rich and poor, big and small have been delaying maintenance on their water systems for decades. Now, even wealthy towns are suffering the consequences of past reluctance to pay for water system upkeep.
Madison mayor wants to spend $425K on PFAS filtration system
Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway wants to spend $425,000 to design a system to filter PFAS chemicals out of a city well.
PFAS News Roundup: PFAS in face masks, McDonald’s and Burger King sued for PFAS in packaging
Catch the latest updates on what’s happening with PFAS in Great Lakes Now’s biweekly headline roundup.
FRESH: Wisconsin Judge Strikes Down Toxic ‘Forever Chemicals’ Cleanup Rule
Fresh is a biweekly newsletter from Circle of Blue that unpacks the biggest international, state, and local policy news stories facing the Great Lakes region today.
DNR restarts effort to set bacteria standards in groundwater
The state Department of Natural Resources has restarted efforts to set standards for bacteria in groundwater after conservatives on the agency’s policy board killed the attempt in February.
COLLABORATIONS
Since 2019, Great Lakes Now has partnered with MLive Media Group to bring audiences news and information about PFAS and drinking water. The collaboration began with the “Forever Chemicals documentary and these MLive articles about the financial cost to local communities who need to deal with the contaminations. The project was supported by the Ravitch Fiscal Reporting Program at the Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at the City University of New York.
Oscoda residents say ‘enough’ after 9 years of PFAS with no cleanup plan
Representatives from a number of Michigan communities—Oscoda, Flint, Detroit and Belmont among them—gathered on Wednesday to call on the U.S. Air Force for action on PFAS cleanup.
The Forever Chemicals: MLive Reporters and Great Lakes Now engage Sustainable Brands 2019 audience
After a documentary screening at the Sustainable Brands 2019 conference in Detroit, Great Lakes Now hosted an audience discussion with the MLive Media Group reporters who have been leading the coverage of the PFAS issue in Michigan.
PFAS pollution already costing Michigan communities millions
Michigan residents may be in line to pay for the fixes to PFAS contamination for years to come.
Digital Credits
“The Forever Chemicals” documentary was produced by Rob Green and Sandra Svoboda.
Digital Designers: Shelby Jouppi, Mila Murray
Digital Video for “The Forever Chemicals” documentary: Angela Brayman, Marie Gould, Rob Green, Zosette Guir, Matt Ilas, William Kubota, Sandra Svoboda, Jordan Wingrove, Ernie Zinger
With additional production support and partnership from MLive Media Group and the Ravitch Fiscal Reporting program at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at the City University of New York.