FDA: PFAS levels dropped more than 90%

Over the last 20-30 years, the PFOA and PFAS levels in the environment and in the human body have dropped by over 90%, according to the Food and Drug Administration studies cited by officials from the North Carolina Water Quality Association (NCWQA) in testimony before state lawmakers on Wednesday June 3.

“Everybody in this room has PFAS in our bodies,” Paul Calamita, general counsel for NCWQA, told theHouse Agriculture and Environment Committee.

During a previous meeting, chair Rep. Jimmy Dixon, R-Duplin, indicated that the purpose of these hearings is to determine the scope of regulatory and enforcement actions the DEQ may take regarding the discharge of these chemicals.

NCWQA is responsible for regulating drinking and wastewater facilities in North Carolina. 

“Every wastewater plant in the state has biosolids,” said Calamita. “We want as little PFAS as possible in biosolids.” 

He stated that NCWQA believes the correct processes are in place for the monitoring and minimization strategy outlined before lawmakers by NCDEQ.

“We think it will be highly successful because all the right incentives are behind it,” said Calamita. “It’s already been successful in the state, and it’s been successful around the country in many states. This shouldn’t be political. This should be good science, not good politics.

He said that NCWQA strongly believes in their monitoring and minimization approach, pointing to reductions in state and national levels of PFAS, PCVs, and mercury. 

“This is a tried-and-true approach that we think makes sense here, particularly where we don’t have instream water quality standards and won’t for a while,” Calamita said. “So that these industries will know what the ultimate number they have to meet before they put in any technology, if that is needed.” 

Most PFAS and wastewater in North Carolina comes from household washing machines, cookware, food packaging, and other products rather than this being just an industrial issue, he said. The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) sets minimum contamination levels (MCLs) for PFOA and PFAS.

“Our understanding of the dangers presented by certain PFAS compounds continues to grow,” Jon Sanders, director of the Center for Food, Power, and Life at the John Locke Foundation, told the Carolina Journal. “That the levels are much lower now than they have been is encouraging. Legislators are performing their proper role by looking into the issue. It could be that the minimization approach is the prudent approach, and it can always be adjusted as we learn more. A standard passed in legislation, however, could end up being both wrong and difficult to adjust. Regardless of what kind of solution policymakers opt for now, they and the general public will need to stay vigilant.”

“Even though that’s just two PFAS, when you protect for those two, you are generally going to protect for the vast majority of PFAS with those technologies,” said Calamita.

Calamita cautioned lawmakers against duplicating efforts with PFAS technology. He explained that building the technology at the water plants and then again at the wastewater plants is not efficient. 

“Do it at the water plant,” he said. “If you are worried about water, we do it at the water plant. It’s protected. Whether the wastewater boys and girls are having good days or bad days, the drinking water will be protected. But we certainly don’t want to do anything to make us build it twice.”  

The FDA recently told the Environmental Management Commission (EMC) that PFAS levels in national food surveys were not of public concern, according to NCWQA. 

Land application of biosolids is a critical program in North Carolina, according to Calamita. Farming partners have two choices, he explained: They can use highly regulated biosolids, which slowly release nutrients, or they can use chemical fertilizer, which is subject to far fewer regulations.

Calamita says that chemical fertilizers are currently at their highest levels ever due to rising natural gas prices and geopolitical turmoil.

According to NCWQA, the risk of human exposure to PFAS from land application of biosolids is little, if any. While long-chain PFOA and PFAS are the most concerning, he said, they remain in the first few feet of soil, posing minimal risk to groundwater.

“The farmers are our partners; we care as much about them as we care about our own families,” said Calamita. “We would not send a biosolids product to them if we couldn’t look them in the eye and tell them it was a perfectly appropriate product for them to use on their fields where their families are, where their wells are.” 

He emphasized that very few, if any, farmers have left the biosolids land application program because they trust NCWQA and believe that it is the right thing for their fields. 

“Food is very expensive,” said Calamita. “If we are going to do things to make food much more expensive and to make it much more expensive to farm a decent living, we are going to do that very carefully.” 

NCWQA recommended to lawmakers that the EMC should be allowed to continue its PFAS rule-making process, asserting that PFAS minimization is working and state legislation is not needed at this time.

JD Solomon, chair of the EMC, told lawmakers that there are no proposed rules regulating biosolids at this time, and the DEQ pilot study was presented to the Committee in April 2026. 

EPA set out a 6-PFAS standard for drinking water in 2025, according to Solomon.  In September 2025, the Commission for Public Health adopted those standards, which will be enforced by the federal government starting in 2029. In May, EPA withdrew four of those six, leaving only PFOS and PFOA, which will go into compliance in 2031. 

Groundwater standards for PFOA, PFAS, and GenX were adopted in September of 2025, Solomon told the committee. 

According to the EMC, land-application fields and wastewater facilities do not utilize PFAS in their operations. 

Environmental impacts, benefits, and costs are all evaluated during the rulemaking process, according to Solomon. The EMC is continuing to focus on minimizing and monitoring regarding the surface water standard, and public comment remains open through June 15. 

Lawmakers such as Rep. Pricey Harrison, D-Guilford, pushed back on some of the officials’ claims about the impact of PFAS chemicals on farms. Harrison asserted that PFAS has destroyed farms in Maine and Texas and that in North Carolina, PFAS has been found in honey, “So we know it’s a real problem here.” 

She also expressed frustration that the EPA had dropped the four chemicals related to drinking water regulation. 

“It seems like the industry might be moving away from PFOA and PFOS,” said Harrison.

Harrison said it was “like whack-a-mole” because there are almost 15,000 other chemicals that can be regulated. She advocated for regulating chemicals by classes rather than one by one. 

The committee took no action during this meeting.

“FDA: PFAS levels dropped more than 90%” was originally published on www.carolinajournal.com.