Study: Twin Cities residents exposed to chemicals; effects uncertain

The state Health Department will present the findings of its study of human exposure to perfluorochemicals at two public meetings this week.

The first meeting will be at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Skyview Elementary School in Oakdale. The second meeting is Wednesday at 7 p.m. at City Hall in Cottage Grove.

The study found that the residents of the eastern part of the Twin Cities have been exposed to the chemicals, which were legally dumped into east metro landfills until the mid-1970s.

Since then, the chemicals have spread through the groundwater.

The health effects of PFCs on the general population are largely unknown, but studies on 3M workers exposed to them during manufacturing show no harmful effects.

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