News Environment

Landfills belch toxic ‘forever chemicals’ into the air

The systems that collect landfill gas weren’t designed to manage or destroy volatile PFAS

A bulldozer is shown in a landfill.

Owing to their prevalence in cleaning chemicals, toiletries, electronics, clothing and many other consumer products, toxic “forever chemicals” accumulate in landfills, where some eventually migrate from the waste into runoff liquid and gas.

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By Nikk Ogasa

What’s dumped into a landfill is supposed to stay there, but a new study finds that toxic “forever chemicals” are wafting from the waste into the air.