$1 Million In Federal Funding For PFAS Study In Western Michigan

A $1 Million dollar grant has been awarded for western Michigan to study the long term health affects of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly referred to as PFAS.

U.S. Senator Gary Peters of Michigan announced the $1 million grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry to conduct a PFAS health study examining contaminated sites in western Michigan.

The grant will be awarded to the Michigan State Department of Health and Human Services to conduct experiments at sites in Parchment/Cooper Township and North Kent County. The study aims to help researchers gain a better understanding of the relationships between PFAS contamination and certain illnesses, and to promote awareness of the health risks PFAS poses to communities in Michigan and throughout the nation. The joint study will enroll 6,000 adults and 2,000 children in seven different sites across the nation to help PFAS-affected communities assess their risk to certain health effects specifically lipid metabolism, kidney function, thyroid disease, liver disease, glycemic parameters, diabetes and weaker immune response.The research at each site will investigate health outcomes among those enrolled.