WASHINGTON — Michigan will be part of a federal health study to investigate the relationship between drinking water containing PFAS and health.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is investing $7 million nationwide to examine exposure sites. Michigan’s health department will receive $1 million of those funds to assess the effects of the PFAS contamination in Parchment, Cooper Township and northern Kent County.
It is the first study to look at exposure at multiple PFAS sites around the country. The CDC hopes it will help health agencies understand the relationship between exposure to the chemical and what it does to health.
PFAS is a man-made chemical that can cause cancer and several other health issues. It was commonly used in non-stick cookware, firefighting foams and other industry and consumer products.
Michigan has had multiple communities impacted by PFAS contamination from firefighting foam or former industrial sites.
