Week 0- Water You Waiting For?
Hi friends!
My name is Sanjana Iyer and I will be doing my senior project on Per- and Poly-Fluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) contamination in water sources, especially in marginalized communities. But what exactly is PFAS? PFAS, also known as “forever chemicals”, is a group of man-made chemicals used in everything from firefighting foam to nonstick cookware. This seems pretty great, right? So what’s the catch? The catch is that once these chemicals enter our environment, they don’t leave. And while this issue affects people everywhere, it’s especially harmful to communities that already face economic and social challenges. Many of these communities are located near industrial sites, military bases, and waste disposal facilities, making them even more vulnerable to higher levels of PFAS contamination.
Now that I’ve given you a brief introduction to my topic, let me tell you more about myself and my personal interest in this issue. I first became interested in PFAS after watching the movie Dark Waters (if you haven’t seen it already, you should definitely check it out!!). Learning about the Robert Bilott case against DuPont and the lives that PFAS has devastated struck me. This inspired me to learn more about the issue and well, here I am!
What excites me the most about this project is the chance to look into the relationship between PFAS contamination and social determinants of health. By analyzing the geospatial distribution of these chemicals, I hope to find patterns that show how such contamination affects vulnerable communities. In addition to all of that, I’m working with Assistant Professor Karanikola at the University of Arizona on developing reusable sponges that will remove PFAS from water. This represents an advancement toward restoring water quality in contaminated areas, and I can’t wait to see where this project takes me!
That’s all for now! I’m thrilled to share this journey with you, and I hope you’ll stick around to see what I discover in the weeks to come!