{"id":187478,"date":"2024-11-12T11:01:16","date_gmt":"2024-11-12T16:01:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/?p=187478"},"modified":"2024-11-19T09:00:11","modified_gmt":"2024-11-19T14:00:11","slug":"even-the-pristine-waters-of-iceland-are-contaminated-with-forever-chemicals-whats-the-source","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/news\/even-the-pristine-waters-of-iceland-are-contaminated-with-forever-chemicals-whats-the-source\/","title":{"rendered":"Even the pristine waters of Iceland are contaminated with \u201cforever chemicals.\u201d What\u2019s the source?\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

GSO professor bridges global research on PFAS contamination<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

November 12, 2024<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Rainer Lohmann<\/a>, professor at URI\u2019s Graduate School of Oceanography and director of URI\u2019s Steep Superfund Research Program<\/a>, has returned from a Fulbright-sponsored research visit to Iceland, where he engaged in a collaborative exchange with scientists, government officials, and the public to deepen the study of PFAS\u2014per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances\u2014in Icelandic water systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The island nation, which is comparable in size to the state of Ohio, with a population of less than 400,000 people, has close ties with Europe, where regulations and environmental approaches differ from those in the United States. Lohmann was interested in studying PFAS contamination in Iceland, as it is far less industrialized and contaminated than the U.S., providing a unique opportunity to trace the sources of these chemicals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During his visit, Lohmann delivered four guest lectures and participated in two public events organized by his Icelandic hosts, the University of Iceland faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering. These included discussions with local experts, an open lecture titled Legacy and Emerging Pollutants from Land to the Arctic Ocean<\/a>, and meetings with Iceland\u2019s Environment Agency and its primary analytical lab responsible for seafood safety oversight. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Lohmann delivered four guest lectures, participated in two public events, and toured sites critical to Iceland\u2019s water management,<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThese discussions helped me gain a better understanding of the challenges of remediation and awareness of pollution in Iceland,\u201d Lohmann said. \u201cThe country has limited experience and capacity actually dealing with contaminated sites, and PFAS treatments are very expensive.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before Lohmann\u2019s visit, data on PFAS levels in Iceland was sparse, yet initial sampling efforts revealed relatively clean waters by international standards, though not entirely PFAS-free. Elevated levels, linked to prior use of aqueous film-forming foams, mirrored trends observed in the U.S. \u201cMost PFAS detected in Iceland likely stem from locally used products, although some long-range transport from Europe and North America may impact marine fish populations around Iceland,\u201d he explained. \u201cThe most cost-effective solution will be to limit the import and use of PFAS to protect their drinking water resources.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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During his Fulbright visit, Lohmann worked on improving local knowledge of organic micropollutants and contributed to new research on emerging water pollutants in Iceland.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

In addition to presentations and meetings, Lohmann\u2019s hosts arranged visits to sites critical to Iceland\u2019s water management, including Reykjavik\u2019s major drinking water wells, a wastewater treatment facility, and urban and industrial runoff areas. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lohmann is one of over 400 U.S. citizens who share expertise with host institutions abroad through the Fulbright Specialist Program each year. His work with Icelandic scientists aims to raise awareness about these problematic chemicals and guide efforts to protect Iceland\u2019s water resources from contamination. Beyond this collaboration, Lohmann\u2019s experience lays the groundwork for future studies that will deepen understanding of PFAS in both Icelandic and U.S. environments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This story was written by Mackensie duPont Crowley, digital communications coordinator with URI\u2019s Graduate School of Oceanography.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Rainer Lohmann has returned from a Fulbright-sponsored research visit to Iceland, where he engaged in a collaborative exchange with scientists, government officials, and the public to deepen the study of PFAS in Icelandic water systems.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4762,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[79],"tags":[2977,3078,2940,2011,804],"class_list":["post-187478","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-fulbright","tag-iceland","tag-organic-pollutants","tag-pfas","tag-rainer-lohmann"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187478","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4762"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=187478"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187478\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":187549,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187478\/revisions\/187549"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=187478"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=187478"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.uri.edu\/gso\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=187478"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}