When the small Swedish town of Kallinge discovered its drinking water contained extremely high levels of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), residents had no idea what it would mean for their health. The contamination, traced to firefighting foam used at a nearby airbase, had been seeping into the municipal water system for years or even decades.
On 16 December 2013, residents of Ronneby municipality, which includes Kallinge, learned their tap water had been switched to a different source after the award-winning water supply was found to contain high levels of PFAS. The chemicals, often called 'forever chemicals' because they persist in the environment for hundreds of years, had no taste or smell, so no one had previously thought to test for them.
Initially, the municipality reassured residents the old water supply was shut down. Mayor Roger Fredriksson said PFAS was completely unknown to them at the time. The Swedish Food Agency announced the chemicals did not pose an acute health risk, but long-term consequences were a concern. By then, production of one PFAS type found in Ronneby's water, perfluorooctane sulfonate, had been restricted in the EU since 2009, though firefighting foams were excluded.
Researchers at Lund University began testing blood samples from local 11-year-olds in February 2014 to assess the extent of contamination in residents. The case highlights the dangers of PFAS, which have since been linked to cancer and diabetes.
