In France, drinking water contamination by "forever chemicals" (PFAS, for per- and polyfluoroalkylated substances) is reaching unsuspected levels. Two separate measurement campaigns, made public on Thursday, January 23 – one by consumer association UFC-Que Choisir and environmental NGO Générations Futures and the other by analysis laboratory Eurofins – suggest that virtually all French people are exposed to these toxic substances through their drinking water, and in the vast majority of cases at levels exceeding the theoretical quality threshold.

In all, around 100 tap water samples were taken in the main urban areas of mainland France, as well as in rural areas with or without industrial sites.

In both surveys, trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) was found to have the highest concentrations, as well as being ubiquitous, a characteristic due to its ultra-short carbon-fluorine chain, which makes it the smallest of the PFAS. TFA shows signs of liver toxicity; Germany has proposed its classification as a reproductive toxicant and an application is under consideration by the European Chemicals Agency.

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