Rivers, lakes and tap water in areas of Bangladesh that host garment factories are swarming with dangerous levels of toxic “forever chemicals”, some with links to serious health issues, according to new research . In the first study of its kind conducted in Bangladesh, a global fashion hub supplying international brands, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), commonly known as forever chemicals, were found in 27 water samples collected close to textile factories in the capital, Dhaka. In many of the samples, taken in 2019 and 2022, PFAS levels were far above regulatory limits set in the EU and the US, while several contained one or more globally banned chemicals, according to the report by the Environment and Social Development Organization (Esdo) and Ipen, a network of NGOs .

PFAS are a family of about 10,000 chemicals that have been linked to a wide range of serious illnesses , including certain cancers . They have been used in manufacturing and added to everyday consumer products since the 1950s. They are called forever chemicals because scientists say they could take hundreds or even thousands of years to degrade after the products they were used in are thrown away.

If PFAS leak into water, they could remain there for centuries. The textiles industry accounts for 50% of the total global use of PFAS. View image in fullscreen Wastewater filled with fabric dye flows from factories into Dhaka’s Buriganga River.

Photograph: Anadolu/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images “Ban.