Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly known as PFAS, are a family of thousands of chemicals now pervasive in the environment. Called “forever chemicals,” they do not break down and can bioaccumulate in both humans and other living organisms. Some PFAS are toxic.
Minnesota requires a strategic, coordinated approach to protecting families and communities from these ubiquitous substances.
In Minnesota, PFAS contamination was first measured in the eastern Twin Cities in the early 2000s. Since then, PFAS have been detected in water, sediment, soil, and fish all across Minnesota. PFAS are in air emissions from industrial facilities, wastewater from industrial and municipal sources, soil and water surrounding firefighting training sites, groundwater surrounding landfills, and are sometimes found with no obvious source at all.
Scientists and environmental regulators have reached an overwhelming consensus that significant actions are needed to prevent adverse impacts from PFAS. While management and mitigation actions have significant positive effects, ultimately Minnesota cannot clean our way out of the PFAS problem. Instead, the pollution must be prevented from the outset through restrictions or bans on PFAS uses and assistance and financial support for reformulation.
Minnesota's PFAS Blueprint
Short- and long-term opportunities to manage PFAS in our environment and protect families and communities.
Minnesota's strategy for PFAS
- prevent PFAS pollution wherever possible
- manage PFAS pollution when prevention is not feasible or pollution has already occurred
- clean up PFAS pollution at contaminated sites
Ten priorities to protect communities and families
Working together, Minnesota state agencies developed Minnesota’s PFAS Blueprint to support a holistic and systematic approach to address PFAS concerns in ten key issue areas. The significant interconnections between different areas illustrate the complexity and difficulty of managing PFAS.
Preventing PFAS pollution
Phasing out the nonessential use of intentionally added PFAS in products is the most effective way to reduce potential harm to human health, reduce or prevent environmental contamination, and protect our economy from the extreme costs of cleaning up PFAS pollution. Now, Minnesota is leading the way by implementing PFAS use prohibitions in a variety of products.
Measuring PFAS effectively and consistently
Minnesota’s work to address PFAS is built on a foundation of sound science. Many programmatic decisions are based on the data gathered and analyzed by state agencies and partners that collect a wide variety of data on environmental conditions and pollution sources. Collectively, the goal is to generate and use dependable data to make reasonable decisions to protect human health and the environment.
Quantifying PFAS risk to human health
Our understanding of the impacts of PFAS on human health continues to evolve. While much is known about the human health impacts of a few PFAS chemicals, little to nothing is known about potential human health risks from most other PFAS compounds or mixtures present in our built and natural environments, or our bodies. MDH, MPCA, and other agencies continue working together to better understand, characterize, and quantify human exposure and subsequent health risks.
Limiting PFAS exposure from drinking water
Minnesotans value safe and sufficient drinking water. MDH and MPCA have been collaborating to sample drinking water and groundwater for PFAS since 2002, when PFOS and PFOA were first detected in the Twin Cities East Metro area because of 3M’s historic disposal of contaminated wastes. MDH continues to lead the way with drinking water monitoring at public water systems across the state.
MPCA continues to sample private wells and collaborates with other state agencies to investigate and mitigate PFAS contamination in private wells in areas of a known or potential release.
MDA has sampled for pesticides – including those now identified as having PFAS active ingredients – in groundwater, including in private wells, for over 30 years.
- Interactive Dashboard for PFAS Testing in Drinking Water (MN Department of Health)
- PFAS and Home Treatment of Water (MN Department of Health)
- Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) and Private Wells (MN Department of Health)
Reducing PFAS exposure from fish and game consumption
Hunting and fishing – recreationally and for subsistence – continues to be integral to the identity of many Minnesotans, especially to members of the eleven Tribal Nations and Communities in the state. MDH, MPCA, and DNR continue to partner with each other and others to understand the presence of PFAS in fish and game across Minnesota and translate that information into actionable steps for people to reduce their exposure.
- Fish Consumption Guidance (MN Department of Health)
- Developing water-quality criteria for PFAS
- PFAS in fish
Limiting PFAS exposure from food
Minnesotans should have confidence that their food is safe from harmful toxins. Research has shown that PFAS can accumulate into produce and livestock from contaminated water, air, soil, and animal feed or migrate into food from PFAS-coated cookware and food packaging.
MDA and the MPCA have been working to better understand potential sources of PFAS in food in Minnesota. MDH has provided some guidance on how to reduce potential exposure from home-grown foods.
Understanding risks from PFAS air emissions
Sampling for PFAS in air emissions is difficult. Although there are test methods capable of quantifying PFAS being emitted from stacks, conducting the sampling is physically challenging and costly, meaning few facilities have voluntarily conducted any kind of emissions testing for PFAS.
Despite the challenges of conducting stack testing, MPCA and MDH are moving forward to identify and implement creative ways to understand emissions of PFAS by facilities in Minnesota, and to potentially limit those emissions.
Protecting ecosystem health
MPCA, DNR, MDA, and MDH have continued to collaborate to collect and analyze environmental media for PFAS, including groundwater, surface water, fish tissue, soil, and sediment. Each agency has a role in understanding these chemicals in Minnesota, like identifying the occurrence and impacts that PFAS have on fish, wildlife, and other biota.
Remediating PFAS-contaminated sites
MPCA and MDH have been actively working to understand PFAS contamination and remediate sites since the finding of PFOS and PFOA compounds in the East Metro in the early 2000s. Flexibility under the Minnesota Environmental Response and Liability Act (MERLA) has given Minnesota agencies the ability to get ahead of federal Superfund programs on seeking action from parties known to have caused PFAS contamination in the state.
Managing PFAS in waste
Managing PFAS in the waste system is an enormous task. MPCA continues to identify PFAS contamination in various waste streams, including in solid waste, landfill leachate, stormwater, wastewater, and biosolids. Solutions to managing PFAS will take efforts from owners and operators across the waste management sector – MPCA, regulated parties, consultants, and other stakeholders will need to work toward common goals.
Ultimately, prohibiting the use of PFAS in consumer products and enforcing that prohibition is the only effective way of significantly reducing or eliminating PFAS-contaminated waste. Even so, it will take decades to realize the full impact of these prohibitions.
- PFAS and closed landfills
- Industrial stormwater and PFAS
- PFAS in biosolids strategy
- Cottage Grove | 3M Chemical Operations