In North Carolina, researchers have found that pine needles, a readily available and consistent resource, is an excellent measure of PFAS exposure and airborne contamination. Pine needles are now used to compare the contaminant level of different geographical areas within North Carolina and serve as a reliable way to measure and gain an understanding of the historical PFAS presence of the last 50 or so years. The hope is that this method will pave the way for other researchers to monitor and understand the timeline of PFAS contamination beyond North Carolina with their efforts as a blueprint and baseline.
