One month after the announcement of the contamination of the tap water, the town of Kibichuo was still reluctant to conduct blood tests on its residents. At a public information session, Takashi Yorifuji of Okayama University, who serves as chairman of the town’s Health Impact Countermeasures Committee, said that even if they did conduct tests, “it would be difficult to interpret.”

However, without a blood test to determine whether people had been exposed to PFOA, it was impossible to comprehend the health impacts. A group of local residents found a testing institution on their own and got tested.

As a result, all 27 people tested were found to have been exposed to high levels of PFOA.

In the drawing a child wrote, “Dear Mom, the lunch box was delicious.” Parents are heartbroken after serving their children food made with PFOA-contaminated tap water

Blood tests are the first step for comprehending health effects

The town’s Health Impact Countermeasures Committee compared the results of health examinations of residents in the Enjo district, where tap water containing PFOA was supplied, with residents in other districts and explained that “there was no significant difference.”

However, analyzing regional differences and understanding the health situation of each individual are two different matters.

Even if symptoms do not appear right away, exposure to high amounts may cause them in the future. Although PFOA does not have an “acute toxicity” that causes symptoms immediately after ingestion, it accumulates in the body and can produce symptoms later in life or in one’s child.

The first step in comprehending the health effects is to determine each individual’s exposure status through blood tests.

Checking for health effects isn’t the only reason blood tests are needed though.

The local comapny, Man-ei Industry left PFOA-containing activated carbon near the water source, which contaminated the tap water. When the town learned about the contamination, it did not take quick action. Who will bear the responsibility if the residents’ health is affected? If the level of exposure right after the announcement of ban on drinking tap water is understood, it will be evidence of harm when residents seek compensation in the future.

Health effects of PFOA = From the website of the European Environment Agency

Seeking help from Kyoto University scientists

The residents’ group found a testing institution. After doing research on blood tests conducted in other regions and asking for connections from acquaintances, they got to Akio Koizumi, professor emeritus at Kyoto University, and Koji Harada, associate professor at the same university.

Koizumi is a pioneer in PFAS research in Japan, and Harada was Koizumi’s student when he was at university.

Since the early 2000s, the two have been doing research on the PFOA pollution in Osaka caused by Daikin Industries. In 2005, Koizumi’s Kyoto University research team discovered that Daikin’s Yodogawa Plant was emitting 10% of the world’s PFOA, poisoning the rivers that flow into the prefecture’s tap water supply. In 2010, they proved that the Yodogawa Plant was emitting significant amounts of PFOA into the atmosphere during the PFOA manufacturing process. Their research was published in Environmental Science & Technology, a prestigious magazine in the field of environmental hygiene.

After Koizumi retired, Harada took over PFAS research at Kyoto University. Together with Koizumi, he has conducted blood tests on local residents in Osaka, Tokyo, Okinawa, and other areas where PFAS contamination has been discovered. The blood tests they conducted revealed high levels of exposure among local residents, prompting the establishment of a PFAS outpatient clinic in collaboration with medical institutions.

When Koizumi and Harada were asked by the group of Kibichuo residents to conduct blood tests, they readily agreed.

Even though they had done blood tests all over the country, the case in Kibichuo Town came as a surprise to them, and they decided that blood tests should be conducted immediately to determine the exposure status.

On November 26, 27 people, mostly members of the residents’ group and their families, underwent blood tests.

PFOA detected in 2-year-olds at levels 70 times higher than the national average

The test results came out in early December.

Kyoko Uehara (pseudonym), her husband, and her 2-year-old son got tested.

Kyoko was most worried about her son’s health. She had been raising him with tap water since he was born. Even when she found out about the PFOA contamination in October 2023, she was still feeding him curry and rice made with tap water.

Kyoko opened the envelope and took out a piece of paper that had the results.

Her level was 97.7 ng/mL, and her husband’s was 76.1 ng/mL.

These values ​​are 44 and 34 times higher than the national average of 2.2 ng/mL which was revealed in a survey by the Ministry of the Environment and exceed the clinical guidance adopted by the U.S. government that states that treatment is required at levels of 20 ng/mL or higher.

She had expected it, but she didn’t think it would be this high, but she was even more surprised when she saw her son’s value.

It was 151.9 ng/mL.

This is 70 times the national average and significantly exceeds the U.S. guidelines on health risks.

Kyoko’s hands trembled as she held the paper.

A lot of things went through her mind Immediately.

After giving birth to her son, she breastfed him every three hours. Even then, Kyoko drank tap water almost every day. She cooked baby food every day. Even now, she doesn’t give him many sweets, but instead gives him tea and miso soup. All of it is made with tap water.

Kyoko blamed herself.

“What I thought was for my son’s sake ended up contributing to his exposure to large amounts of PFOA.”

At the same time, she was angry with the town’s sloppy work.

“If proper measures had been taken when the contamination was discovered three years ago, my two-year-old son would not have been affected.”

Kyoko asked Koizumi of Kyoto University what she should do about her son.

“It is said that exposure to PFOA makes children more susceptible to obesity.  You should monitor the condition closely from now on.”

Kyoko had a hunch.

Her son’s health checkups had always shown him to be of “normal” weight, close to “skinny,” but he has recently become “obese” and his condition is worsening. This sudden change has made her suspicious. Obesity can also be a factor in causing various diseases.

Kyoko decided to make sure her son had regular checkups.

A town that cares about the reputation of the government and Okayama University researchers

The Uehara family was not the only one found to have been exposed to high levels of PFOA.

All 27 people tested had high levels.

The mean value was 171.2 ng/mL, and the median value was 162.6 ng/mL.

The 27 people live in different parts of the Enjo area, but all of them have well above the national average and the U.S. guidelines.

In response to these findings, the residents’ group decided to submit a petition to Mayor Yamamoto Masanori requesting that blood tests be undertaken on all of the Enjo district’s approximately 1,000 residents.

Yet, the town is unwilling to carry out the tests. It will not respond to a simple request. They need to communicate the results of the blood tests and their significance to raise a sense of crisis.

To do this, they need the cooperation of the Kyoto University team that conducted the tests. The group decided to invite Koizumi to Kibichuo and have him explain the test results to Mayor Yamamoto when submitting a request. The group told its intention to Mayor Yamamoto.

In mid-December, town official Narasaki visited Hiroshi Ogura, a member of the residents’ group, to deliver Yamamoto’s message. Naraaki is one of the officials in charge of responding to the PFOA contamination. He is also the secretary of the “Property District,” where the activated carbon, the source of the contamination, was found.

Mayor Yamamoto’s message was that he did not wish to speak with Koizumi. The committee set up by the town includes researchers from Okayama University and national institutions. “It would be a disgrace to those people,” Narasaki said. Furthermore, he said that the mayor  did not want the situation to be reported in the media.

Narasaki persisted for about two hours at Hiroshi’s house, but Hiroshi did not accept his demands.

The mayor, while rolling up a list of requests from residents, said, “We want to meet the wishes of the residents.”

The residents’ group submitted their petition on December 20. Around 15 people from the press gathered at the venue.

The group’s’ representative Hiroshi Ogura and member Junko Abe took the mic.

Junko read out a letter detailing her feelings up to that point.

“I attended all of the town’s information sessions and requested that everyone who wanted blood tests be tested, but Mayor Yamamoto’s responses were either negative or unclear. I thought to myself that the town probably wouldn’t do the tests after all, so after several meetings we decided to have the blood test on our own on November 26.”

They also told the voices of residents who underwent the tests.

“I couldn’t think of anything to explain my symptoms, and I was always wondering why.”

The same was true for Junko.

“I had symptoms that seemed related and it bothered me a lot. My family cried three times. It was an unbearable feeling to think that maybe our future would have been different if we hadn’t lived here.”

Junko then emphasized the importance of blood testing, saying, “It will be too late if the futures of our beloved local children are jeopardized. If working-age people get ill, they will struggle to care for their families.”

In a document titled “Results of the Blood Test Survey” that they submitted along with the request, Hiroshi presented data showing just how high the average blood concentration of 171.2 ng/mL for 27 participants was. These were blood concentrations for people across the country who were suspected of ingesting PFAS on a daily basis.

Average of 27 people in Kibichuo Town: 171.2 ng/mL

 

Average of people around Daikin Industries’ Yodogawa Plant in Settsu City, Osaka Prefecture: 101.2 ng/mL

 

Average of people in Ginowan City, Okinawa Prefecture: 33.5 ng/mL

 

Average of people in Kakamigahara City, Gifu Prefecture: 32.2 ng/mL

 

Average of people in Tama area, Toky Prefecture: 24.2 ng/mL

Koizumi, who came from Kyoto, gave a presentation using slides, explaining the domestic and international trends of PFOA contamination and the exposure status of Kibichuo town residents.

Nevertheless, Mayor Yamamoto did not seem to be listening sincerely to what Koizumi was saying.

He had the handouts prepared by Koizumi in front of him, but he didn’t take any notes. He didn’t even have a pen in his hand. He didn’t ask any questions. Did he understand everything?

Hiroshi emphasized to Yamamoto.

“In any case, we do not want to see a situation where residents in the affected areas are left behind because no one takes responsibility.”

After the presentation, Yamamoto appeared in front of the media, rolling up the request letter he had received from the residents’ group and the handouts from Koizumi in his hands.

Yamamoto said, “We want to meet the wishes of the residents.”

Mayor Yamamoto Masanori stands for an interview while rolling up a request letter from the residents’ group (Photo by Nakagawa Nanami on December 20, 2023)

To be continued.

(Originally published in Japanese on July 30, 2024. Translation by Mana Shibata.)

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