WASHINGTON — The Environmental Protection Agency is warning that two “forever chemicals” found in drinking water pose health risks even at levels so low they cannot currently be detected.
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The Environmental Protection Agency said Wednesday that two legacy fluorinated "forever chemicals" pose health risks at levels too low to be detected with equipment like this pictured in a 2019 file photo taken at Trident Laboratories in Holland, Mich.
CORY MORSE, THE GRAND RAPIDS PRESS
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