High levels of most dangerous PFAS for half of Brussels residents

The concentration of the four PFAS (PFAS4) chemicals considered most dangerous to health exceeds the standard of 4 nanograms per litre of water for a significant part of the water consumed in Brussels, La Dernière Heure reports.

Alain Maron, Brussels' Environment minister, said on Wednesday that the 20 PFAS detected by Vivaqua since 2020 are within the limit of 100 nanograms per litre of water, the standard that will also come into force in Brussels next year.

The proposed Brussels regional alarm threshold of 30 nanograms per litre is also not exceeded.

However, regional representative Christophe De Beukelaer has uncovered information on the four most dangerous PFASs from Vivaqua. The level of PFAS4 detected in the Rhode reservoir is well above the Danish standard (2 ng/l) and the Flemish indicative threshold (4 ng/l).

Between October 2021 and October this year, the average PFAS4 concentration in this reservoir, which supplies more than half of the Brussels taps, reached 6.9 ng/l.

The Callois and Uccle reservoirs, which supply the other half of the capital, also have concentrations higher than the Danish standards but lower than the Flemish threshold.

Maron's office said that the European standard is already met everywhere in Brussels, so there is no reason for concern. The office also notes that Maron wants to go beyond the European standard by introducing an additional vigilance threshold of 4 ng/l for PFAS4.

^{© AFP PHOTO / VOISHMEL}