Overview
- An investigation by France Nature Environnement and France 5 found microplastics and tire-derived additives in lake water and sediments, in local air, in one tap sample, and in a subset of residents’ urine.
- Laboratory analyses detected diphenylguanidine (DPG) in all lake-water samples and found 6PPD and its quinone, with west-shore 6PPD‑Q levels comparable to maxima reported in rivers near Guangzhou, China.
- Urine tests from 35 volunteers showed 16 additives overall, with DPG present in 37% of samples, according to results from NIVA and EPFL.
- Annecy’s mayor and two deputies asked the prefecture to establish a PFAS-style monitoring committee and to commission broader environmental and population studies, noting the lake supplies roughly 70–73% of local drinking water.
- Researchers identify road runoff and airborne deposition from heavy shoreline traffic as key pathways, highlight the absence of stormwater filtration along about 40 km of roads, and point to emerging EU actions on 6PPD and Euro 7 rules for tire emissions.