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Unhealthy chips

Unhealthy chips

Chipmakers are worried that a looming regulatory crackdown on “forever chemicals” could harm their booming business. The class of chemicals known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are an essential ingredient in semiconductor chips, but do not break down easily in the environment and have been linked to fertility issues, liver disease and increased cancer risk in humans. Unsafe levels have been found in samples of US and European drinking water and soil. The EU has begun a consultation to ban 10,000 of them, with a 13-year “transition” period for the chip industry. But with few safe alternatives on the horizon, hardly any companies have a plan to eliminate the chemicals from their products.