Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2024 Jan 12;4(1):114-124.
doi: 10.1021/acsestwater.3c00439. Epub 2023 Dec 15.

Unregulated Active and Closed Textile Mills Represent a Significant Vector of PFAS Contamination into Coastal Rivers

Matthew Dunn  1 , Nicholas Noons  2 , Simon Vojta  1 , Jitka Becanova  1 , Heidi Pickard  3 , Elsie M Sunderland  3 , Rainer Lohmann  1
Affiliations

Unregulated Active and Closed Textile Mills Represent a Significant Vector of PFAS Contamination into Coastal Rivers

Matthew Dunn et al. ACS ES T Water. .

Abstract

Despite concerns over the ubiquity of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), little is known about the diversity of input sources to surface waters and their seasonal dynamics. Frequent use of PFAS in textiles means both active and closed textile mills require evaluation as PFAS sources. We deployed passive samplers at seven sites in an urban river and estuary adjacent to textile mills in Southern Rhode Island (USA) over 12 months. We estimated monthly mass flows (g month-1) of perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA: 45±56), and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA: 30±45) from the upstream river influenced by an active mill. Average mass flows were 73-155% higher downstream, where historical textile waste lagoons contributed long chain perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAA). Mass flows of PFNA increased from 7.5 to 21 g month-1 between the upstream and downstream portions of the rivers. Distinct grouping of the two main PFAS sources, active textile mills and historical waste lagoons, were identified using principal components analysis. Neither suspect screening nor extractable organofluorine analysis revealed measurable PFAS were missing beyond the targeted compounds. This research demonstrates that both closed and active textile mills are important ongoing PFAS sources to freshwater and marine regions and should be further evaluated as a source category.

Keywords: PFAS; PFCA; passive sampling; textile mills; waste lagoons.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.. Spatial trends in average sum PFAS concentrations of 12 compounds across 7 sites.
Both active and passive samples identified site 2 as capturing a large source of PFAS to the upstream portion of the river. Both sampling approaches show relatively consistent profiles of sum PFAS concentrations across the river. However, the passive samplers identified site 5 as having a spike in concentration from intermittent waste lagoon discharges that is not captured by discrete active sampling.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.. Principal Component Shows Separation of Active Mill and Historical Waste Lagoon Fingerprint.
Site 2 is located downstream of an active textile mill and exhibited increased concentrations in a PFCA precursor, 7:3 FTCA, as well as elevated shorter chain PFCAs. Sites WL1 and WL2 were historical waste lagoons with high concentrations of long chain PFCAs. Ovals were added to guide the eye and represent specific sites as labeled.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.. Spatial trends in monthly time weighted average concentration across the Pawcatuck River.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.. Active sampling of waste lagoons shows elevated PFAS concentrations.
Concentrations are calculated from solid phase extraction of discrete grab samples. No samples taken at Waste lagoon 1 in April 2021.
Figure 5.
Figure 5.. Comparison of the Mass Flux of PFAS Up and Downstream of the Waste Lagoons.
Values of mass flow in g month−1 are calculated using time weighted average concentrations from passive samplers and discharge results from nearby USGS gauges. Error bars are propagated uncertainty derived from mean standard deviation of time weighted average water concentrations and mean standard deviation of monthly discharge data.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

References

    1. Buck RC; Franklin J; Berger U; Conder JM; Cousins IT; Voogt PD; Jensen AA; Kannan K; Mabury SA; van Leeuwen SPJ Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances in the Environment: Terminology, Classification, and Origins. Integr. Environ. Assess. Manag 2011, 7 (4), 513–541. 10.1002/ieam.258. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Sunderland EM; Hu XC; Dassuncao C; Tokranov AK; Wagner CC; Allen JG A Review of the Pathways of Human Exposure to Poly- and Perfluoroalkyl Substances (PFASs) and Present Understanding of Health Effects. J. Expo. Sci. Environ. Epidemiol 2019, 29 (2), 131–147. 10.1038/s41370-018-0094-1. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Munoz G; Mercier L; Duy SV; Liu J; Sauvé S; Houde M Bioaccumulation and Trophic Magnification of Emerging and Legacy Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) in a St. Lawrence River Food Web. Environ. Pollut 2022, 309. 10.1016/j.envpol.2022.119739. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Robuck AR; Cantwell MG; McCord JP; Addison LM; Pfohl M; Strynar MJ; McKinney R; Katz DR; Wiley DN; Lohmann R Legacy and Novel Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances in Juvenile Seabirds from the U.S. Atlantic Coast. Environ. Sci. Technol 2020, 54 (20), 12938–12948. 10.1021/acs.est.0c01951. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. De Silva AO; Armitage JM; Bruton TA; Dassuncao C; Heiger-Bernays W; Hu XC; Kärrman A; Kelly B; Ng C; Robuck A; Sun M; Webster TF; Sunderland EM PFAS Exposure Pathways for Humans and Wildlife: A Synthesis of Current Knowledge and Key Gaps in Understanding. Environ. Toxicol. Chem 2021, 40 (3), 631–657. 10.1002/etc.4935. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources