PFAS Drinking Water Health Advisory Levels
OHA has established drinking water health advisory levels (HALs) for four PFAS compounds most commonly found in humans. These health advisory levels for PFOS, PFOA, PFNA, and PFHxS are based on adverse developmental and immune effects and are set at levels meant to protect all persons, including sensitive populations, from both short- and long-term exposures in drinking water.
PFAS Compound
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Oregon Drinking Water Health Advisory Levels (HALs)* parts per trillion (ppt) or nanograms per liter (ng/L)
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PFOS
| 30 ppt
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PFOA
| 30 ppt
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PFNA
| 30 ppt
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PFHxS
| 30 ppt
|
*Because these chemicals may have cumulative health effects, OHA will also calculate the sum of detections of the four PFAS chemicals with HALs in the table above. The HAL is exceeded when any of these four PFAS chemicals with results showing detections exceeds 30 ppt, or when the sum of these four PFAS chemicals with results showing detections exceeds 30 ppt. PFAS chemicals with a HAL that are not detected and other PFAS chemicals that do not have a HAL would not be included in the calculation.
Oregon’s drinking water PFAS HALs are non-regulatory and do not mandate a required action; rather they provide information on health risks of certain PFAS compounds so that drinking water system operators and health officials can take the appropriate steps to protect drinking water consumers. OHA's expectation is that public water systems will notify their customers if a health advisory level is exceeded.