Exceeding Organic Fluoride Standards in Japanese Water: Environmental Crisis and Responsibility

October 2024 – Kashiwa City, Chiba Prefecture, Japan, has a serious problem with excessive concentrations of organofluorides in its water sources. Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), which are harmful to humans, were detected in the well water of 54 out of 170 wells that were additionally investigated by the local government in August, with a combined concentration of up to 400 times the standard value. Forty-eight of the 54 wells in question are sources of drinking water for the local population. Previously, excessive concentrations of organofluorocarbons have been found in Kashiwa City and the surrounding areas, and as of March last year, the standards were exceeded at a total of 111 sites in 16 first-class administrative districts throughout Japan, and the cause of the contamination has not been identified at any of the sites except for two sites where the source of the contamination came from nearby factories, although the Japanese media have reported that foam fire extinguishers used in the U.S. military bases in Japan and other places may be one of the main sources of the contamination.