LANSING, Mich. —
Scientists are urging Michigan to adopt some of the strictest and most far-reaching drinking water standards for "forever chemicals" in the country.
A state team responding to contamination from compounds known as PFAS heard from its science advisory workgroup Thursday. The three scientists recommended health-based values for seven types of PFAS.
The federal government has a nonbinding health threshold of 70 parts per trillion for two phased-out forms of the contaminant in tap water. Environmental advocates and others consider them to be weak.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's administration will use the recommended values while writing rules for PFAS standards by April 2020.
The compounds have been dubbed "forever chemicals" because they take thousands of years to degrade, and because some accumulate in people's bodies.
