Ep 46 Season 7 PFAS in Turtles QLD with David Beale also for QLD SL oral history
TalkingPFAS
Turtle Health and PFAS Contamination
This chapter explores the alarming health defects in turtle hatchlings linked to PFAS contamination, with significant concerns for their survival and reproductive maturity. Experts discuss research on the prevalence of PFAS in freshwater turtles, emphasizing its bioaccumulation and effects on both turtle health and Indigenous communities that rely on these species for sustenance. The conversation highlights the need for thorough studies on environmental contaminants and their complex impacts on wildlife.
Welcome back to the Talking PFAS podcast. If you are joining me for the first time a very big welcome to you. I am a journalist and your host Kayleen Bell.
Last episode I brought you a very interesting discussion with Dr Cheng Zhang from the Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology at the University of Queensland in Australia. We spoke about many things but mainly we discussed how his team of researchers have discovered that retrieved PFAS can be used in batteries. I highly recommend you have a listen to that episode to find out more.
Today’s discussion will complete the PFAS collection of interviews that I have recorded for the Queensland State Library digital PFAS collection. I will put a link to that collection in today’s show notes.
Now a little about my guest today, he is Adjunct Professor David Beale, a senior research scientist who leads the CSIRO’s Ecosurveillance Systems team in Queensland.
The majority of David’s research career is looking at the impact of contaminants on organisms, whether it be wildlife or humans or any biological system. He has made significant contributions in the field of environmental applications using specialised omics tools to study the effects of contaminants like PFAS on wildlife.
Today we will be focusing on David’s work looking at the effects of PFAS on some freshwater turtles in Queensland. He was not able to disclose the location where these turtles are indeed being affected by PFAS contamination, but he was able to say that the PFAS event that caused the contamination, occurred in around 2017/2018 in Australia.
David’s team are also doing work looking at the effects of PFAS on other wildlife such as marine turtles, some snakes and frogs, including cane toads, and water dragons around South- East Queensland.
David advised me that he has received a CSIRO Julius Career Award which has allowed him to meet and collaborate with environmental regulators worldwide using omics-based tools to assess pollution impacts with a significant focus on PFAS. As part of his JCA travels, he has visited the USA Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Canadian Department of Climate Change & Environment, the Fraunhofer Institute in Germany, and many other leading academic institutions and environmental regulators across the UK, Europe, Asia and North America.
David said that from their research looking at PFAS effects on freshwater turtles, their results demonstrate that there is an impact, that they are seeing now. He said it could be a generational impact where the particular species of freshwater turtle studied may not exist in the future because of PFAS.
Another big message from David Beale in today’s discussion is that “there just isn’t enough focus on researching the effects of chemical contaminants on wildlife,” in Australia.
Next episode I will be bringing you a discussion I had with Peter Murphy from EPOC Enviro (https://epocenviro.com/). We talk about the latest news and developments for this Aussie remediation company including discussing their US and Australian patents for their foam fractionation technology used in their SAFF suite of products.
And finally a quick announcement, I am now taking expressions of interest from remediation companies to explore sponsorship opportunities for the Talking PFAS podcast. For more details (& the terms and conditions) you can email me your details including phone number at TalkingPFAS@gmail.com
I look forward to you coming back to join me again for some more great PFAS discussions. Lastly, to my valued listeners, thank you for listening! Please consider subscribing to the podcast so you don’t miss an episode and consider posting a review or sharing the podcast with a colleague or friend.
Copyright Notice: As always all information in today’s episode is covered by copyright law. Please feel free to share links to this episode broadly, in its entirety (no edited version allowed), to social media or via text or email. If you are a guest in the podcast you have permission to publish a link to the full episode, with attribution to Talking PFAS podcast, produced by journalist Kayleen Bell, on your own website.
Contact me at TalkingPFAS@gmail.com
Show Notes Links:
- QLD State Library PFAS oral history collection by Kayleen Bell
1. Paper 1 discussed today:
“Forever chemicals don’t make hero mutant ninja turtles: Elevated PFAS levels linked to unusual scute development in newly emerged freshwater turtle hatchlings (Emydura macquarii macquarii) and a reduction in turtle populations.” David Beale et al.
Science of The Total Environment Volume 956, 15 December, 2024. Elsevier (open access).
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048969724064696
2. Paper 2 discussed today:
“Partitioning of PFAS to serum, tissues, eggs and hatchlings of an Australian freshwater turtle.”
Suzanne Vardy et al (& David Beale).
Journal of Hazardous Materials. Elsevier (open access).
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0304389424004643?via%3Dihub
3. Current Australian Inquiry PFAS: Select Committee on PFAS:
On 22 August 2024, the Senate appointed a select committee, to be known as the Select Committee on PFAS (per and polyfluoroalkyl substances), to inquire into the extent, regulation and management of PFAS, and present its final report by 5 August 2025.
The committee has reopened submissions and welcomes contributions from community members impacted by PFAS, and other interested parties.
The committee secretariat can also help with any inquiries and can be contacted on telephone +61 2 6277 3247 or by email to PFAS.sen@aph.gov.au.
CSIRO Submission #22
Thank you !!
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