来源：《洛杉矶时报》
原文刊登日期：2021年10月20日
本文适合2023考生
Polyfluoroalkyl and perfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, are a class of man-made chemicals that break down slowly in the environment, can accumulate in the human body and have been linked to all manner of negative health effects from cancer to high cholesterol.
多氟烷基和全氟烷基物质(简称PFAS)是一类在环境中缓慢分解的人造化学物质，可在人体中积累，并与癌症和高胆固醇等各种负面健康影响有关。
But these “forever chemicals” are nearly impossible to avoid. They are, quite literally, all around us: in consumer products, from cosmetics and cookware to food packaging and firefighting foam; in our food supply; in the soil, air and water; and even running through our veins. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has found traces of PFAS in the blood of nearly everyone it has tested for the past two decades, which suggests widespread exposure.
但这些“永久的化学物质”几乎是无法避免的。毫不夸张地说，它们无处不在：在消费品领域，从化妆品和炊具到食品包装和灭火泡沫；我们的食物供应；在土壤、空气和水中；甚至流淌在我们的血管里。在过去二十年中，美国疾病控制与预防中心检测的几乎每个人的血液中都发现了PFAS的痕迹，这表明PFAS的广泛接触。
That’s why it was heartening that the Biden administration announced this week a sweeping three-year plan to regulate the 600 PFAS used in the U.S., including testing for contamination in food, soil and drinking water, and setting enforceable limits on the amount of PFAS that can be in drinking water. “We’re going to use every tool in our toolbox to restrict human exposure to these toxic chemicals,” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael S. Regan told the Associated Press.
这就是为什么拜登政府本周宣布了一项全面的三年计划，对美国使用的600种PFAS进行监管，包括检测食品、土壤和饮用水中的污染，并对饮用水中的PFAS含量设定可强制执行的限值，这令人鼓舞。“我们将使用工具箱中的每一个工具来限制人类接触这些有毒化学物质，”美国环境保护署署长Regan告诉美联社。
We hope so, because scientists and environmentalists have been sounding the alarm for years about the unregulated use of PFAS as a growing body of research has found compelling links between exposure to PFAS and some cancers, immunity disorders and other health conditions. Yet EPA officials under both the Obama and Trump administrations did very little, though the U.S. government has its own PFAS problem it hasn’t dealt with. Nearly 700 military facilities around the country, including several in California, may be contaminated by the use of firefighting foam, which is made with PFAS.
我们希望如此，因为科学家和环保主义者多年来一直在为无管制地使用PFAS敲响警钟，因为越来越多的研究发现，接触PFAS与某些癌症、免疫紊乱和其他健康状况之间存在令人信服的联系。然而，奥巴马和特朗普政府的环保署官员做得很少，尽管美国政府也有自己的PFAS问题没有解决。全美近700处军事设施，包括加利福尼亚州的几处，可能因使用PFAS制成的灭火泡沫而受到污染。
In the absence of federal leadership, a few of the more environmentally minded states, such as California, have created their own PFAS regulations. Last month, Governor Gavin Newsom signed two bills to reduce the use of PFAS in California. One would prohibit these chemicals in paper or cardboard food packaging (think pizza boxes), which is used to make them waterproof or grease-free, starting in 2023, as well as require that cookware, such as nonstick pans, with added PFAS or other chemicals of concern have consumer disclosures.
在缺乏联邦政府领导的情况下，一些更注重环保的州，如加州，已经制定了自己的PFAS法规。上个月，加州州长Newsom签署了两项法案，以减少PFAS在加州的使用。其中一项法案是，从2023年开始，禁止在用于防水或不粘油脂的纸或纸板食品包装(比如披萨盒)中使用这些化学物质，并要求不粘锅等添加了PFAS或其他令人担忧的化学物质的炊具披露给消费者。
The other bill bans the sale of any product for children or infants made with PFAS starting in 2023. A law passed in 2020 will prohibit PFAS-based firefighting foams in California beginning in January.
另一项法案从2023年开始禁止销售任何含有PFAS的儿童或婴儿产品。2020年通过的一项法律将从明年1月开始在加州禁止基于PFAS的消防泡沫。
These laws may help Californians avoid exposure, but since chemicals don’t recognize boundaries, this comprehensive national strategy from the Biden administration to rein in these “forever chemicals” is essential.
这些法律可能有助于加州人避免接触PFAS，但由于这些化学品化学品不分国界，拜登政府制定的控制这些“永久化学品”的全面国家战略至关重要。