Iowa Capital Dispatch: A first-of-its-kind study of rural Iowa creeks and rivers found traces of synthetic chemicals that are toxic and persist in the environment indefinitely at sites across the state. “They’re all over the place,” said Dana Kolpin, a research hydrologist for the U.S. Geological Survey who led the study, the results of which were published this month. The study found evidence of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances — also known as PFAS or “forever chemicals” — in nearly a third of the 60 streams that USGS field staff sampled in 2019 and 2020.