PFAS contamination has also been found in Tuscany in waterways

Tuscany joins the now extensive list of Italian regions contaminated by PFAS. To reveal it a series of samplings carried out independently by Greenpeace which confirm the alarm that had already been launched in 2013 by the National Research Council (CNR) and the Water Research Institute (IRSA).The analyzes conducted by the environmental organization found high concentrations of the contaminant in the region's waterways, especially downstream of the rivers, where the concentration was up to 20 times higher than upstream.«The picture of contamination that emerges from our analyzes is anything but reassuring.Some cases have been well documented for at least ten years, but the Tuscany Region has never seriously addressed the problem:in fact, there is no provision on industrial waste", commented Giuseppe Ungherese, head of the Greenpeace Pollution campaign who also underlined that it is needed as soon as possible start investigations on drinking water.Tuscany is the fourth Italian region affected by the phenomenon, after Veneto, the Lombardy and the Piedmont.

Pfas are a group that collects over 10,000 synthetic molecules not present in nature, used in various industrial processes for the manufacture of products such as non-stick pans or some food packaging.Being highly stable molecules, they are not degraded briefly in the environment and have been defined as "eternal pollutants".Exposure to PFAS has been associated with thyroid problems, diabetes, damage to the liver and immune system, kidney and testicular cancer and negative impacts on fertility and since November 2023 the substances have also been recognized as carcinogenic.Pfas have already been detected in Veneto – where the issue is so serious that even the UN High Commissioner sent a delegation years ago – to the drinking waters of Lombardy and Piedmont.

The latest measurements follow a long trail of alarms dating back more than ten years:already in 2013 an investigation by the Cnr-Irsa, the Water Research Institute, had found various critical issues regarding environmental contamination by Pfas in Tuscany, also noting that the presence of substances was attributable to the textile district of Prato and the tanning district of Pisa.Furthermore, according to data collected in 2022 by ArpaT, Pfas were present in 76% of surface waters, 36% of groundwater and 56% of biota (animal) samples monitored.The latest has recently been added to this list analyses of Greenpeace, a non-governmental and environmentalist organization that carried out samples upstream and downstream of Tuscan industrial purification plants.Measurements were carried out at the Torrente Pescia consortium and Aquapur for the paper district, the Aquarno purifier which discharges into the Usciana for the tanning district, the Cuoio-Depur purifier which discharges into a tributary of the Arno for the leather district , the Ombrone and Bisenzio rivers for the textile district and the Brana stream for the horticultural district.

The most alarming thresholds were detected in the Ombrone river, where the concentration downstream of the textile district was approximately 20 times higher than upstream.Other significant increases were also recorded downstream of the Aquapur purifier - where the presence increased by approximately 9 times compared to that upstream - and downstream of the Aquarno purifier, which enters the Usciana canal.The research exploited two different methods:the measurement of the concentration of 57 individual molecules and the analysis of total Pfas through a technique that allows the presence of organic fluorine to be measured.The most worrying contaminations were detected in Ditch Calicino (4,800 nanograms/liter), followed by measurements in Usciana channel (4,500 nanograms/liter) and in Rio Frizzone (3,900 nanograms/liter).Analyzes of specific molecules, however, showed higher concentrations in the Rio Malucco (over 200 nanograms per liter), in the Fosso Calicino (approximately 241 nanograms per liter) and in Ombrone river (over 115 nanograms per liter).

Greenpeace he explained which, starting from some data from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), it is possible to estimate that a paper mill can emit between 40 and 100 kilograms of PFAS per day, underlining that in the sector, especially for packaging in contact with food, there are already numerous alternatives to PFAS.The report, therefore, would constitute an invitation not only to proceed with the extension of environmental monitoring, but also to adopt a provision that limits the polluting emissions of the industrial sectors involved.«It is necessary for local health authorities to start investigations into drinking water as soon as possible, especially in areas where there are high levels of environmental contamination", concluded the environmental organisation.

[by Roberto Demaio]