Blood tests show highest levels of forever chemicals in those living
near New Mexico plume
[October 25, 2025]
By SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — It's a name many people have trouble
pronouncing, but these synthetic chemicals have been used in everything
from fast-food packaging to nonstick cookware, clothing, household
cleaning products and even firefighting foam.
PFAS — or perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances — resist
breaking down and as a result have found their way into drinking water,
soil, air and the bloodstreams of 99% of Americans.
This is certainly true for people who live or work near a plume of
contamination that has seeped beyond the boundaries of Cannon Air Force
Base, where PFAS-laden firefighting foam was used for years.
New Mexico health and environmental officials conducted a $1.2 million
testing project, drawing blood from nearly 630 people. They shared the
results Thursday night during a public meeting.
What did they find?
The research shows 99.7% of participants had one or more PFAS in their
blood, with the most common being associated with firefighting foams.
While the percentage isn't surprising given the overall prevalence of
so-called forever chemicals in the environment, officials said some
residents living in the plume area showed dramatically higher
concentrations than the broader testing group. About one-quarter of them
had levels reaching the highest concentration tier used in national
guidelines.
The findings suggest a correlation with groundwater contamination
migrating from the base, state officials said.
New Mexico Environment Secretary James Kenney said during the meeting
that his agency will help the community in any way that it can but that
the state is still locked in litigation with the U.S. Defense Department
over the damage caused by the contamination.
At Cannon Air Force Base, state officials have reported that PFAS has
been detected in groundwater at concentrations of 26,200 parts per
trillion, exceeding state and federal drinking water standards by over
650,000%.
Cannon reported earlier this year that it has spent more than $73
million so far on investigating the problem and installing pilot
projects to treat contaminated groundwater.
Kenney said it's time for the federal government to move ahead with
cleanup outside the base.
“We need the whole of New Mexico to stand up and say we’ve had it,” he
said.
Health concerns
Exposure to PFAS has been linked to increased cholesterol levels, small
decreases in birth weight, kidney and testicular cancer and changes in
liver enzymes.
State officials in a report published in August said some of the
chemicals can linger in the blood for several years after exposure.
Research by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has also found it
can take weeks to years for levels of many PFAS to decrease by half in
human blood, assuming exposure isn't ongoing.
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A water researcher tests a sample of water for PFAS at the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency Center For Environmental Solutions
and Emergency Response in Cincinnati, on Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2023. (AP
Photo/Joshua A. Bickel, File)
 It's not easy to draw a bright line
between exposure and health effects, said Tasha Stoiber, a senior
scientist with the Washington, D.C.-based Environmental Working
Group.
“There are so many different factors that affect individual health
outcomes and also affect what levels you will see in your blood,”
she said, explaining that a person's age, where they live, what they
eat and drink and where they work can all play a role.
According to slides shared with the audience, the tests in Curry
County showed PFAS levels tend to increase with age, that males had
higher levels, and those who had military or aviation careers had
higher concentrations — all things consistent with national data.
The state on Friday announced a $12 million effort to connect about
100 private well users in rural Curry County to a drinking water
system that meets state and federal standards.
An expanding problem
Watchdog groups that track PFAS nationwide say contamination is more
widespread than previously thought. They're using data released by
the EPA and states to compile maps showing spots across the country
where drinking water systems report levels above what's recommended.
Contamination has also been confirmed at hundreds of military bases
around the country.
That includes a base in southern New Mexico, where state officials
are embarking on another health survey to gauge exposure at a nearby
lake where scientists documented some of the highest PFAS levels in
wildlife and plants worldwide.
In Clovis, Thursday's audience was sparse but outspoken. They voiced
frustrations that properties have been devalued and rural
livelihoods threatened due to the contamination.
New Mexico is among hundreds of plaintiffs that are part of
multi-district litigation in a South Carolina federal court that
aims to hold producers and users of PFAS-laden firefighting foam
accountable for contamination at sites across the country.
Separate from the legal front, some states have adopted their own
PFAS rules while the focus of federal regulations has been narrowed.
New Mexico just this week held a webinar on a new state law that
calls for phasing out and ultimately prohibiting the sale of
products containing intentionally added PFAS.
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