An episode of the BBC’s Panorama programme aired on 1 Dec 2025 with the title The Truth about Forever Chemicals.  While EBNet’s PFAS WG and the EBIC Hub obviously take this issue very seriously indeed, we are not sure some of the apparent messages here were very helpful. The programme …
Webinar date: Mon 1 Dec 2025, 12:30-13:15 UK The EPSRC-funded Better Water 4All Network+ is hosting its first webinar on Engineering for the challenges of Forever Chemicals (PFAS) in drinking water. The speaker is Dr Yanyan Zhang who leads the Analysis and Degradation Mechanism of Emerging Contaminants Laboratory in Westlake …
A BBC News item reports that seven UK water companies have been issued with enforcement notices requiring them to take action on potentially harmful concentrations of PFAS ‘Forever chemicals’ in water supplies to an estimated 6 million people. The cases were identified through analysis of Freedom of Information requests to …
Applications are invited for a fully-funded 3-year PhD starting in October 2026, on Assessment of the sources, transport and fate of PFAS in soil, sediment, surface and groundwater and biota in England, with a focus on the River Thames catchment. The PhD will be based in the Faculty of Science …
The Better Water for All Network+, led by Dr Bing Guo of the University of Surrey, was successfully launched on 3 Oct 2025 in an event that brought stakeholders together to discuss how we can achieve a sustainable water future and tackle the challenges of chemical and biological micropollutants. The …
PFAS continues to draw the attention of regulators and others, to such an extent that it can sometimes be hard to keep up. Fortunately the UK’s Contaminated Land: Applications in Real Environments group (CL:AIRE) has now set up a PFAS Webpage that compiles relevant information from around the world.  Non-commercial …
Earlier this year EBNet’s PFAS WG presented a Position Statement identifying knowledge gaps and the need for development of cost-effective approaches able to degrade PFAS. Since then the WG has: run a successful international workshop co-sponsored by EBNet and the Environmental Biotechnology Innovation Centre (EBIC) – see video playlist presented …
The Environment Agency’s new Position Paper on Nature-Based Solutions is the starting point for an episode in the Planet Possible podcast series, featuring Helen Wakeham, the EA’s Director of Water, and Mark Lloyd, CEO of the Rivers Trust. A wide-ranging discussion includes the challenges presented by lack of performance data, …
An EBNet-funded POC awarded to Dr Tao Lyu, the PFAS WG Lead, looked at the use of molecular docking and dynamics simulations to investigate interactions between enzymes and PFAS compounds, with the goal of helping to elucidate potential mechanisms for PFAS biodegradation and providing tools to bridge the gap between …
Deadline for responses: 18 Aug 2025 08:00 am UK Spring Innovation is calling for case studies, trials and research to add to a water sector database on PFAS research. The goals of this survey include: Mapping what is being done: research, trials, innovation fund entries, and supplier activity Identifying where …
Deadline: 6 August 2025 Don’t miss these funded PhD studentships at Cranfield University which are closing soon: Unveiling and enhancing nature-based solutions for mitigating emerging micropollutants Establishing the potential for improved management of intermittent sewage discharges with nature-based solutions These topics build on the work carried out by Dr Tao …
We are posting a lot on PFAS and related issues at present, reflecting the level of activity in this area. Dr Tao Lyu, who leads EBNet’s PFAS WG, gave a presentation on Treatment wetlands as nature-based solutions in managing emerging micropollutants: PFAS and beyond at the European Wastewater Management Conference …
One of the Keynote speakers at AquaConSoil 2025 has kindly made his contribution available to EBNet members. The talk by Dr Hans Slenders of Arcadis focused on PFAS, including the emerging pollutant trifluoroacetic acid or TFA. A version of his presentation on ‘How sustainable is our current approach for PFAS?’ …
AquaConSoil addresses the dynamic interfaces between soil, sediment and water systems under anthropogenic stress. This year’s conference in Liege on 16-20 June 2025 spotlighted themes such as integrated Soil–Sediment–Water System Management, Sustainable Remediation Strategies, Digital Innovation, and Systems Thinking. These core areas for advancing and harnessing the power of environmental …
A recent BBC News item highlights growing awareness of the threat from emerging pollutants: ‘Forever chemical’ TFA found in all but one of tested UK rivers – BBC News Prof Frederic Coulon of EBNet’s PFAS WG said, “The appearance of these chemicals in drinking water sources, particularly trifluoroacetic acid or …
