PFASs in Finnish Rivers and Fish and the Loading of PFASs to the Baltic Sea
Open accessAbstract
The concentrations of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in the Finnish aquatic environment were measured in riverine waters and in inland, coastal and open sea fish. In addition, the PFAS load to the Baltic Sea from 11 rivers was calculated. Measurements show that PFASs, including restricted perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS), are widely present in the Finnish aquatic environment. At three out of 45 sampling sites, the concentration of PFOS in fish exceeded the environmental quality standard (EQS) of the Water Framework Directive (WFD). The annual average (AA) ∑23PFAS concentration in surface waters ranged from 1.8 to 42 ng L−1 and the concentration of PFOS exceeded the AA-EQS in three out of 13 water bodies. In European perch (Perca fluviatilis) and Baltic herring (Clupea harengus membras), the ∑PFAS concentration ranged from 0.98 to 1 µg kg−1 f.w. (fresh weight) and from 0.2 to 2.4 µg kg−1 f.w., respectively. The highest concentrations in both surface water and fish were found in waters of southern Finland. The riverine export of ∑10PFAS to the Baltic Sea from individual rivers ranged from 0.4 kg yr−1 to 18 kg yr−1. PFAS concentrations in fish of point-source-polluted sites and coastal sites were higher compared to fish of open sea or diffusely polluted sites. The PFAS profiles in surface waters of background sites were different from other sites. This study shows that PFASs are widely found in the Finnish aquatic environment. Different PFAS profiles in samples from background areas and densely populated areas indicate diverse sources of PFASs. Although atmospheric deposition has a substantial influence on PFAS occurrence in remote areas, it is not the dominant source of all PFASs to the aquatic environment of Finland. Rather, wastewaters and presumably contaminated land areas are major sources of PFASs to this aquatic environment.
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The comparative overview of maximum concentrations of targeted PFAS in European surface waters reveals pronounced spatial differences among freshwater systems across Europe.
“The comparative overview of maximum concentrations of targeted PFAS in European surface waters (Table S7) reveals pronounced spatial differences among freshwater systems across Europe”
From Integrated Targeted and Suspect Screening Workflow for Identifying PFAS of Concern in Urban-Impacted Serbian Rivers (2026) · cites this paper as [36]
Section 3.1 reports substantial differences in PFAS concentrations among Finnish rivers, and Section 4.1 compares Finnish and Swedish river concentrations. Those passages support spatial variation, but the paper does not provide the claimed comparative overview of maximum concentrations across European surface waters; its own measurements are from Finland, with a comparison to Sweden. (LLM, conf=0.85)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredMaximum ΣPFASN values range from 35.02 ng/L in Malta (N = 7) and 42 ng/L in Finland (N = 23) to 725 ng/L in France (N = 22) and 2878 ng/L in Spain (N = 21).
“Maximum ΣPFASN values range from 35.02 ng/L in Malta (N = 7) [37] and 42 ng/L in Finland (N = 23) [36] to substantially higher maxima in France (ΣPFASN = 725 ng/L; N = 22) [33] and Spain (ΣPFASN = 2878 ng/L; N = 21) [32].”
From Integrated Targeted and Suspect Screening Workflow for Identifying PFAS of Concern in Urban-Impacted Serbian Rivers (2026) · cites this paper as [36]
Section 3.1 reports that the annual-average concentration of 23 PFASs in Finnish rivers reached 42 ng/L, supporting the Finland value and N = 23 as the number of compounds analysed. It also reports measured concentrations up to 75 ng/L, so 42 ng/L is not the maximum measured concentration without the annual-average qualifier. The other countries’ values are attributed to different citations, not this source. (LLM, conf=0.88)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredReports of PFAS in surface waters in Europe indicated PFOS and PFOA as the most frequently detected PFAS compounds.
“Table S8 summarises reports of PFAS in surface waters in Europe which indicated PFOS and PFOA as the most frequently detected PFAS compounds (Barbosa et al., 2023; Junttila et al., 2019; Loos et al., 2010; Pignotti et al., 2017; Sims et al., 2022).”
From Occurrence of emerging and persistent organic pollutants in the rivers Cam, Ouse and Thames, UK (2025) · cites this paper as Junttila et al., 2019
Section 3.1 (PFASs in Surface Waters) reports that PFOA was the most frequently detected compound in the Finnish surface-water samples. PFOS was also among the frequently detected compounds, but ranked fourth, after PFHpA and PFHxA; the paper therefore does not establish PFOS and PFOA as the two most frequently detected compounds. (LLM, conf=0.86)
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References 25 · Cited by 56
Research works printed but not linked: 21
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- Authors
- Junttila, V., Vähä, E., Perkola, N., Räike, A., Siimes, K., Mehtonen, J., Kankaanpää, H., & Mannio, J.
- Affiliations
- Finnish Environment Institute (FI)
- Corresponding author
- Junttila, Ville
- Venue
- Water
- Publisher
- MDPI AG
- Published
- 2019-04-25
- Volume
- 11
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 870
- ISSN
- 2073-4441 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2941945139
- Cited by
- 56
- References
- 25
- Citations by year
- 2026: 7 · 2025: 10 · 2024: 11 · 2023: 10 · 2022: 8 · 2021: 8 · 2020: 2
- FWCI
- 1.95
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- dx.doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Water (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Työväentutkimus Vuosikirja (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Funders
- Ministry of the Environment (Finland) (Work was done within the project UuPri of which total funding was 724 000 euros.)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Environmental Chemistry › Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances research
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis › Toxic Organic Pollutants Impact
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis › Environmental Toxicology and Ecotoxicology
- Keywords
- per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, PFOS, Baltic Sea, Perca fluviatilis, Baltic herring, point source pollution, atmospheric deposition, wastewater, contaminated land, PFAS sources, Finland
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