Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) in Integrated Crop–Livestock Systems: Environmental Exposure and Human Health Risks

Gaurav Jha, Vanaja Kankarla, Everald McLennon, Suman Pal, Debjani Sihi, Biswanath Dari, Dawson Diaz and Mallika Nocco
Additional contact information
Gaurav Jha: Department of Land, Air and Water Resources, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA
Vanaja Kankarla: Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
Everald McLennon: Department of Crop and Soil Science, Oregon State University, Klamath Falls, OR 97603, USA
Suman Pal: Department of Internal Medicine, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM 87106, USA
Debjani Sihi: Department of Environmental Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
Biswanath Dari: Agricultural and Natural Resources, Cooperative Extension at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, Greensboro, NC 27411, USA
Dawson Diaz: Department of Land, Air and Water Resources, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA
Mallika Nocco: Department of Land, Air and Water Resources, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 23, 1-20

Abstract: Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are highly persistent synthetic organic contaminants that can cause serious human health concerns such as obesity, liver damage, kidney cancer, hypertension, immunotoxicity and other human health issues. Integrated crop–livestock systems combine agricultural crop production with milk and/or meat production and processing. Key sources of PFAS in these systems include firefighting foams near military bases, wastewater sludge and industrial discharge. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances regularly move from soils to nearby surface water and/or groundwater because of their high mobility and persistence. Irrigating crops or managing livestock for milk and meat production using adjacent waters can be detrimental to human health. The presence of PFAS in both groundwater and milk have been reported in dairy production states (e.g., Wisconsin and New Mexico) across the United States. Although there is a limit of 70 parts per trillion of PFAS in drinking water by the U.S. EPA, there are not yet regional screening guidelines for conducting risk assessments of livestock watering as well as the soil and plant matrix. This systematic review includes (i) the sources, impacts and challenges of PFAS in integrated crop–livestock systems, (ii) safety measures and protocols for sampling soil, water and plants for determining PFAS concentration in exposed integrated crop–livestock systems and (iii) the assessment, measurement and evaluation of human health risks related to PFAS exposure.

Keywords: forever chemicals; livestock contaminations; chronic kidney disease; remediation; environmental justice; groundwater contaminants; exposure pathway; foaming agent; renal dysfunction (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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