A new report finds PFAS - commonly known as “forever chemicals” - contaminating rivers, lakes and streams across Missouri, raising concerns about risks to wildlife, drinking water and fish that people catch and eat.
Researchers with the Environment Missouri Research & Policy Center, MoPIRG Foundation and Frontier Group found per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) at all 20 Missouri water testing locations examined between 2022 and 2024.
Nationwide, the report found PFAS at 83% of 1,602 testing locations across 40 states and the District of Columbia.
The Missouri sites included waterways near St. Louis and Kansas City, as well as popular fishing spots such as Little Tarkio Creek, Mill Creek and Todd Creek north of Kansas City.
John Rumpler, clean water director for the Environment Missouri Research & Policy Center and an author of the report, said PFAS testing and treatment often focus on drinking water systems, but contamination in rivers and streams also poses concerns.
“Missouri’s waterways should be clean and free of toxic chemicals,” Rumpler said. “We shouldn’t have to worry about tainted drinking water or catching and eating contaminated fish.”
The report identified 44 different types of PFAS at one or more testing locations in Missouri. Nationwide, researchers detected as many as 114 types of the chemicals.
PFAS are used in many everyday products, including nonstick cookware, food packaging and waterproof clothing. The chemicals can enter waterways through industrial discharges, sewage treatment plants, firefighting foam and sewage sludge spread on farmland.
They are often called forever chemicals because they break down very slowly in the environment. Some PFAS have been linked to health concerns, including decreased fertility, developmental delays in children, weakened immune responses and certain types of cancer.
Rumpler said contamination could be more widespread than the report shows because many waterways have not been tested and the analysis does not include all available testing data.
“Many of these rivers, lakes and streams are sources of drinking water across the country,” Rumpler said. “And it is a lot more expensive to clean up and filter out PFAS than to prevent the problem in the first place.”
The report’s findings do not establish the level of contamination or health risk at each site. Researchers analyzed data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Water Quality Portal and sampling conducted by local watershed groups, including Missouri Confluence Waterkeeper.
