Officials in Johnson County, Texas declared a disaster condition Tuesday on Tuesday after dangerous levels of “eternal chemicals” in farmland, groundwater and animal tissues have been revealed.
Why is it important?
The Disaster Declaration is due to growing national concerns regarding the presence of single and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAs in products and waterways.
PFA contains thousands of humanized chemicals found in everyday items, including non-stick cooking utensils, fire-squeezing foam, grease-resistant food wrappers, water-resistant clothing, and many other items. Known as “eternal chemicals,” PFA can cause a large amount of harm as it takes a long time to break down.
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What do you know
At a town hall meeting Tuesday night, Johnson County Environmental Crime Investigator Dana Ames called the test results “absolutely shocking” and presented the situation to the citizens involved.
County officials have called on Abbott to declare a state of emergency in Johnson County after extensive testing revealed a dangerous level of PFA for PFA across the county. Testing revealed that PFA contaminated local farmland and groundwater, revealing that “fish and cattle deaths have been reported.”
The contamination of PFA comes from the application of biosolids used as fertilizer in the area, the county press release said.
Hazardous levels of chemicals were also found at Biosolid, a wastewater treatment plant in Fort Worth.
Officials emphasized that well water near the Biosolid’s applicable site “tests positive for PFA at levels hundreds of times higher than the EPA’s safe drinking water restrictions.”
During the failure process, PFA can leach into the soil and water supply. These chemicals threaten the water when products containing them are dumped on the ground or in lakes or rivers.
When someone is exposed to a large amount of PFA, the chemical can damage the body in a variety of ways.
High levels of certain PFA include increased cholesterol, reduced vaccine response in children, altered liver enzymes, increased risk of hypertension or pre-skinned pre-lamps in pregnant women, decreased birth weight, renal or testicular cancer may cause an increased risk of Agent for toxic and disease registry webpages dedicated to PFAS.
What people are saying
Governor Greg Abbott spokesman Andrew Mahalleris told Newsweek: Johnson County samples, including sample and methodology quality, and TCEQ, have not received information. ”
Johnson County press release on Disaster Declaration: “Pollution poses an immediate threat to the county’s agricultural sector, drinking water supply and public health.”
County Judge Christopher Bodeker said in his disaster declaration: “This situation poses a threat to the very foundations of the agricultural community and the safety of our residents. We are taking immediate action to protect our citizens and support our agricultural communities through this crisis.”
What will happen next
A press release from Johnson County said the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality “continues to encourage “urgent calls for regulatory interventions” to apply biosolids as fertilizer in Johnson County.”
County officials stressed that it is “essential” for Abbott to issue a disaster declaration to access federal aid from Texas farmers affected by PFAS pollution.
Updated 2/14/25, 5 PM ET: This article has been updated to include comments from Abbott’s spokesman.
