PFAS is everywhere — but in these 10 states, the contamination has been traced to specific, identifiable industrial or military sites.
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances ('forever chemicals') are detected in most U.S. drinking water systems at low levels. But in some states, the contamination is dramatic and traceable — a specific factory, a specific airbase, a specific firefighting-foam release. This is the list of the most documented cases.
Wurtsmith Air Force Base (Oscoda) and the Flint-Bay City corridor drove some of the most aggressive PFAS contamination in the country. Michigan PFAS Action Response Team produces the deepest state-level reporting on PFAS in the U.S.
Read the Michigan profileSaint-Gobain Performance Plastics in Merrimack contaminated municipal supplies across Merrimack and Bedford. New Hampshire enacted some of the strictest PFAS MCLs in the country in 2019.
Read the New Hampshire profileChemours Fayetteville Works released GenX and related PFAS into the Cape Fear River, affecting Wilmington and downstream communities. NC DEQ continues consent-order enforcement against Chemours.
Read the North Carolina profileSolvay Specialty Polymers (West Deptford) drove PFNA contamination across multiple South Jersey supplies. NJ adopted enforceable PFOA/PFOS MCLs in 2020, among the first states to do so.
Read the New Jersey profile3M's manufacturing in the Twin Cities introduced legacy PFAS contamination across the eastern metro. State settled with 3M for $850M in 2018 for drinking water remediation.
Read the Minnesota profilePeterson Space Force Base and other military installations drove PFAS contamination across the El Paso County corridor (Fountain, Widefield, Security). Colorado's 2020 PFAS Action Plan addresses ongoing remediation.
Read the Colorado profileHoosick Falls Saint-Gobain plant and Newburgh Air National Guard base produced two of the most-publicized PFAS contamination events in the Northeast. NY enacted state MCLs in 2020.
Read the New York profileSaint-Gobain's North Bennington plant contaminated wells and municipal supplies across southwestern Vermont. State established stringent PFAS health advisories early.
Read the Vermont profileBradley International Airport firefighting foam release (2019) contaminated municipal supplies in the Windsor Locks corridor. Naval Submarine Base New London is a separate documented PFAS site.
Read the Connecticut profileDover Air Force Base and New Castle Air National Guard base drove regional PFAS contamination. DE has enforceable state MCLs as of 2023.
Read the Delaware profileRanked by the depth, severity, and public-record documentation of the PFAS contamination tied to identifiable sources, drawn from our state profiles (lib/states-extended.ts) and cross-referenced against EPA, state agency, and peer-reviewed publications. This is not 'states with the highest tap-water PFAS levels' — that's a different list with messier methodology. This is states where the contamination has a clear public-record source.
PFAS is also in tap water in states not on this list — at lower levels and from more diffuse sources. The 2024 EPA Lead and Copper Rule Improvements + the new PFAS MCLs will force tens of thousands of utilities to begin reporting their PFAS levels publicly over the next three years. We will update this list as that data lands.