During the "Adam and Jordana" podcast episode titled "Minnesota will soon have the strictest regulation against forever chemicals," guest Ali Ling, an assistant professor of civil engineering at the University of St. Thomas, discusses with the hosts the state's new stringent regulations on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), commonly known as "forever chemicals." These substances are persistent environmental pollutants linked to adverse health effects.
From the episode:
Ling said PFAS are “in all sorts of products we use every day,” such as food packages and laundry detergents. “They don't break down in the environment with any natural method so once we make them they stay out there and … then there is potential harm to future generations.”
The Minnesota law, which went into effect on Jan. 1, 2025, “bans intentionally added PFAS in 11 different categories of consumer products where we don't really need them.”
Ling added, “producers and manufacturers and importers don't necessarily know where and if they have PFAS in their products so there's a reporting step as well starting in 2026 and then that goal is by 2032 hopefully the only PFAS in Minnesota are those that are currently unavoidable ... things that we don't really have good alternatives for. … (Minnesota-based) 3M has actually committed to stop making and using PFAS entirely – they're the first of all the PFAS manufacturers to commit to stop manufacturing them.”
The other good news about PFAS, Ling said, is that “our bodies flush them out. So, if we stop being exposed to them, they will basically stop being in our bodies.”
