After years of use in many products around our homes, PFAS, known as forever chemicals, have now been found throughout our environment, especially in water bodies. While we are starting to understand the extent of their presence and some potential impacts, it isn’t clear how informed the public is and what the risks actually are for communities and their residents.
PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are used in a range of products, including nonstick cookware, water- or stain-resistant clothing or carpeting, cosmetics and even toilet paper. These chemicals have been associated with negative health effects, including a weakened immune system, kidney disease and cancer.
Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant (IISG), with funding from the National Sea Grant Office, selected and supported four research projects that focused on the social impacts of PFAS exposure. IISG identified this knowledge gap through three Great Lakes region PFAS scoping workshops and a follow-up survey. More than 70 representatives from at least 45 federal and state agencies, tribal nations, academic institutions, and consulting firms joined the process.
“There’s a lot of funding available to look at fate and transport or health effects of PFAS exposure, but less is known about what people actually know about PFAS and how it may impact their day-to-day lives, particularly at a local level,” said Sarah Zack, IISG Great Lakes contaminant specialist.
Two of the funded projects gathered information and developed resources that can help in assessing whether to be concerned and one’s ability to take action, and several provided insights into more effective communication with the public about PFAS, including at-risk populations. Each of these projects also has an outreach component in partnership with a Great Lakes Sea Grant program.
At Pennsylvania State University, agricultural economist Ruohao Zhang led an effort to develop an online risk assessment tool to help residents of Michigan, New York and Pennsylvania get a better understanding of their exposure to PFAS related to their location and personal choices. The team created the PFAS Exposure Risk Dashboard, which helps viewers create an individualized exposure risk. The assessment factors include a person’s zip code, in terms of nearby industry and the public water system; where they recreate and how often; and their typical diet. The dashboard is also full of general information to help users understand PFAS, exposure pathways, and actions to reduce exposure.
In another project, to help inform state regulators and communities, the National Sea Grant Law Center (NSGLC) compiled a list of all PFAS-related state laws and regulations in the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain regions. Catherine Janasie, a senior research counsel with NSGLC, also conducted a comparative analysis of these policies and developed case studies exploring policy challenges and opportunities for greater regional consistency.
Because PFAS regulations and standards vary widely across Great Lakes states, comparative legal analysis can help policymakers, agencies, and communities better understand gaps, overlaps, and opportunities for more coordinated regional approaches.
In 2025, NSGLC held a webinar to share project findings with local decision-makers and organizations and Minnesota Sea Grant held a public science event featuring Janasie sharing information from the NSGLC report and local experts who discussed PFAS work in Minnesota.
At the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Lyn van Swol, a communication scientist, and her research team studied internet searches to understand how to better communicate about PFAS. The team’s goal was to help create messages that use language that audiences use and answer the questions they are asking.
They found that nearly half of all PFAS- and water-related searches are about how to filter or remove these chemicals from tap water. This research suggests that public health communicators could improve outreach efforts by addressing what people are concerned about in their internet searches.
As part of this project, the researchers also analyzed online PFAS information resources for accuracy and balance. They found variability in these sources in terms of whether they describe the PFAS threat alongside actions that a consumer might take to protect their drinking water.
Through a listening session and surveys, Susan Buchanan, a medical doctor and environmental health scientist at the University of Illinois Chicago, and her team engaged with recreational fishers in two communities in Chicago, Illinois and Benton Harbor, Michigan to assess their knowledge about PFAS and related issues and their fish consumption levels. The researchers worked closely with on-the-ground partners in both locations.
The study revealed that participants are fishing year-round in high-risk waters, and many are eating their catch several times a month. Their knowledge about PFAS in local fish is low, so whether they have faith in their information sources can play a role in changing behavior. The researchers found that the participants trust relevant government agency websites (such as the Department of Natural Resources) and the information included with their fishing licenses.
“We were really happy to fund these four projects because learning more about the societal impacts of PFAS contamination will help guide what research needs to be done to protect people’s health,” added Zack.
To learn more about the scoping process and this regional research effort, visit IISG’s website.
