Senior Technical Specialist Sarah Mass shared the results of a nationwide study of a group of chemicals known as PFAS in rainwater with the Santa Ana Watershed Project Authority in December 2024. Sarah is an expert in PFAS contamination and remediation.
The study, conducted in partnership with laboratory testing company Eurofins, sought to fill in gaps in previous studies of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in rainwater. Those studies analyzed a limited number of PFAS in a limited geographic area.
Sarah and other researchers created a standard protocol for measuring PFAS in rainwater and took samples at locations across six states. Among other preliminary conclusions, they found that the most frequently detected PFAS at many locations were not those included in Environmental Protection Agency methodology under the Clean Water Act, meaning that “the standard analyte lists may significantly underreport PFAS occurrence.” Sarah also stressed the importance of “site-specific rain monitoring” given the variation in total PFAS concentrations measured over space and time.
Read Sarah’s presentation slides.
