There May Be Something Lurking in the Water: A Halloween Tale

Environmental testing laboratory that performs PFAS testing services

There may be something lurking in the water and it’s far scarier than any ghoul, ghost, or swamp monster – it’s PFAS, or Polyfluoroalkyl Substances. At high concentrations PFAS have been linked to a number of reproductive and developmental, liver and kidney, and immunological health effects, such as low infant birth weight, delayed puberty onset, elevated cholesterol levels, reduced immunologic responses to vaccination, thyroid hormone disruption, and possibly even cancer. What’s scarier is that these compounds are resistant to environmental degradation and prone to bioaccumulation in the blood and organs of humans and other animals!

For decades, PFAS have been used in hundreds of industrial applications and consumer products such as carpeting, apparels, upholstery, food paper wrappings, fire-fighting foams, and metal plating. PFAS have been found at very low levels both in the environment and in the blood samples of the general U.S. population, making them contaminants of emerging concern.

Babcock Labs has over 15 years of experience analyzing contaminants of emerging concern under contract with the EPA and for small water systems. Our PFAS testing capabilities include compounds outlined in EPA Method 537 (Rev 1.1). EPA Method 537 identifies 14 perfluorinated compounds, six of which are included on List 1 of UCMR 3. Babcock Laboratories has also modified Method 537 for use on alternate matrices outside of drinking water, such as soil and groundwater. To meet your specific testing needs, we are able to test for additional compounds upon request. 

Babcock Laboratories is recognized as a leader in the industry, and that recognition includes over 10 years of LC/MS/MS expertise, the leading technology for determination of PFAS. We have received industry commendation for our innovative and extensive LC/MS/MS research and method development. Our current capability allows us to detect PFAS at low nanogram-per-liter levels in water. We continuously reinvest in our staff, instrumentation, and state-of-the-art facilities to ensure that we offer our clients reliable lab capacity and the best data quality available.

So there is no need to fear because you can depend on Babcock Labs to help determine if there truly is something in the water! Unless, of course, it’s a ghost (we are still waiting on our Ghostbusters certification). This has been a spooky Halloween tale brought to you by the staff at Babcock Labs. We wish you and yours a happy and safe Halloween, filled with just enough scare!  

Learn more about our PFAS testing services or, for questions or a quote, contact us today.