‘It’s hot data’: Alarm over ‘forever chemical’ found in Brisbane drinking water

A “forever chemical” known to cause cancer has been found in Brisbane drinking water, according to test results the government-owned water authority did not want to release.

Official documents show synthetic material PFOA – used to make non-stick pans and other consumer goods – has been detected at south-east Queensland treatment plants at among the highest known levels in the country.

Another chemical PFOS was also recorded multiple times at levels higher than proposed new Australian regulations.

PFAS chemicals have been found in Brisbane drinking water. Credit: William Davis

“It’s very alarming and really big news,” Western Sydney University water scientist Ian Wright said when shown the Seqwater documents.

“I haven’t seen anything quite like this … it’s hot data.”

Perfluorooctanoic acid – or PFOA for short – is among the family of PFAS chemicals mass-produced by US conglomerate 3M, beginning in the late 1940s. They are prized for their water-resistant and heatproof properties.

PFOA also causes cancer. In 2023, the World Health Organisation’s International Agency for Research on Cancer designated it a known carcinogen, sparking a global debate on how water authorities should respond.

The Seqwater documents were obtained by this masthead under Queensland’s Right to Information Act. They show PFOA has been identified at multiple treatment centres at seven times the level considered safe by the US Environmental Protection Agency, but within the range considered acceptable in Australia.

PFOA was recorded at 36 parts per trillion in Mount Crosby Westbank raw water in 2023, and at only slightly lower levels after treatment. The plant is part of a complex, about 25 kilometres west of the CBD, that produces the majority of Brisbane’s drinking water.

It has also been recorded above the US limit of four parts per trillion – usually significantly so – in the Lowood treatment plant, Camerons Hill, Mount Crosby Eastbank, Lockyer Catchment and Tingalpa Creek Channel since testing began in 2018.

Testing the waters: Dr Ian Wright at Wheeny Creek.Credit: Wolter Peeters

“I haven’t seen higher levels in Australian drinking water,” Wright said.

Another “forever chemical” called PFOS – known for its pervasive environmental contamination through historic use in firefighting foam – has also been identified at levels higher than allowed in the US, and above proposed incoming new Australian regulations.

The sites PFOS was detected at include Camerons Hill, Mount Crosby and Tingalpa Creek Channel.

National regulations have not been breached. In Australia, a maximum of 560 parts per trillion of PFOA is permitted in drinking water – 140 times the level deemed safe in the USA.

Seqwater told this masthead it did not make its test results public or brief the Queensland Minister for Water as national standards were not breached.

This is despite the documents also showing that staff requested their own data be compared with the US EPA guidelines, and highlighting the resulting “exceedances.”

Starting this month, Seqwater publishes its water test results online. It says all sites in its most recent round of testing showed no type of PFAS present.

It still has not made its previous exceedances public.

In a statement, Seqwater said it had acted transparently and appropriately.

“Seqwater reports to the Queensland water supply regulator on water quality and complies with all reporting obligations under relevant legislation. We also proactively publish PFAS data on our website,” the statement said.

“Seqwater strongly refutes any suggestion that it deliberately withholds information about its water quality testing, which includes testing for PFAS.”

Wright, who has led the expert debate about “forever chemicals” in Australia, said the test results were concerning and should have been made public as soon as they were known.

“The fact is, if this water was coming out of [taps] overseas it would be illegal,” he claimed.