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September brought several updates in the PFAS landscape, with policy shifts, regulatory debates, and growing concerns about environmental and health impacts. In the U.S., the White House has introduced a research strategy aimed at understanding PFAS toxicity, while multiple states are pushing for PFAS to be classified as hazardous air pollutants. Meanwhile, firefighting foam spills, sewage sludge contamination, and alarming findings of PFAS in fish continue to raise questions about long-term exposure risks. Canada is adjusting its regulations on PFAS in drinking water, adding to the growing call for tighter controls on these persistent chemicals. Dive into this month’s PFAS newsletter to stay informed on these critical developments!
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SGS PFAS Update
This month, we hosted another PFAS webinar, this time focused on PFAS in Air. Our experts covered everything you need to know from US EPA methods OTM45 and OTM-50 to vapor intrusion, landfill gas monitoring, and the future of personal and occupational exposure monitoring. If you missed it live, watch on-demand here: Clearing the Air: Understanding Airborne PFAS Exposure (streamyard.com)
US Policy News
White House releases research strategy for PFAS
The Biden-Harris administration aims to expand research into how Americans are exposed to harmful “forever chemicals” and how to safely dispose of the materials, according to a new plan that could inform future regulations. One focus of the plan is to better understand the toxicity of different PFAS, of which there are thousands. For example, it calls for developing “scientifically supported classification schemes” to categorize PFAS based on how they affect human health and the environment.
EPA Extends Deadline for PFAS Reporting Under TSCA
On September 5, 2024, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a notice in the Federal Register extending the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) reporting and recordkeeping deadlines for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The original reporting date for the rule was November 12, 2024. The EPA has extended the deadline by eight months to July 11, 2025.
US News by State
National
Three states petition EPA to classify PFAS compounds as hazardous air pollutants
State environmental agencies in North Carolina, New Mexico and New Jersey filed petitions demanding the Environmental Protection Agency categorize four PFAS compounds as hazardous air pollutants and regulate “forever chemicals” under the Clean Air Act. Air pollution is believed to be a major source of PFAS contamination in soil, water, and food supplies.
EPA Claims No Obligation to Regulate PFAS in Farmland Sewage Sludge
U.S. regulators claim they are not legally required to regulate toxic PFAS chemicals in sewage sludge spread on farmland across the country, according to a court filing the government made this month in response to a lawsuit from an environmental watchdog group. In its Sept. 9 filing, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) asked the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C to dismiss the lawsuit, which was filed in June by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) on behalf of a group of Texas farmers and ranchers.
2 states ban PFAS from firefighter gear. Advocates hope more will follow suit
Massachusetts this month became the second state to ban per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, from firefighter protective gear after Connecticut approved the first legislation of its kind earlier this summer in what firefighters and environmental advocates say is a big step forward.
Florida
USF studying PFAS and Tampa Bay fish
Researchers at USF are doing a deep dive into so-called “forever chemicals” in the Tampa Bay and how they could be harming fish. Video link above.
Illinois
Dangerous “Forever Chemicals” Found In Fish At Every Illinois State Testing Site
Looking for 17 different types of PFAS in the fish that were caught and tested in the areas, PFAS was detected at every one of the testing locations. PFAS have been associated with a wide range of harmful health effects including thyroid disease, obesity, liver damage, fertility issues, and even cancer.
Maine
PFAS spill raises questions about older fire systems found in U.S. airport hangars
More than 1,400 gallons of firefighting foam filled with toxic PFAS – forever chemicals – spilled into the environment when a fire suppression system at an airplane hangar in Maine went off by accident. The incident brings up concerns about these older fire systems found in airport hangars throughout the U.S.
New Mexico
Blood testing for PFAS to start in Clovis
State environment and health agencies are starting blood testing for ‘forever chemicals’ in Clovis this month, the first of two rounds of testing. While their harms are still being studied, PFAS has been linked to decreased fertility, fetal developmental delays, increases in certain cancer risk, and disruption of immune responses and hormones, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Wisconsin
DNR proposes more stringent standards for ‘forever chemicals’ in drinking water
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources has announced new standards for “forever chemicals” that align with more stringent federal rules instituted last year, a move that launches a potentially three-year process to stiffen the state’s PFAS regulations.
Canada News
New federal objective puts local drinking water over PFAS limit
Just over two years after the U.S.-based Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released updated advisories regarding some per- and polyfluororalkyl substances (PFAS) — significantly reducing its safe level of the chemicals in drinking water from the previous standard — Health Canada has followed suit with changes of its own.
Global News
Alternatives ‘could reduce PFAS in textiles’
Safe and sustainable alternatives could reduce the use of PFAS – the so-called ‘forever chemicals’ – in textiles and enhance reuse and recycling, according to a new report from the European Environment Agency (EEA). EEA, an agency of the European Union (EU) which provides independent information on the environment, says textiles are one of the biggest sources of PFAS pollution in Europe.
EU Commission restricts use of some PFAS ‘forever chemicals’
The European Commission has decided to restrict the use of a sub-group of so-called “forever chemicals.” “We are removing harmful substances from products that citizens use every day, like textiles, cosmetics and food packaging,” said European Commission Vice President Maros Sefcovic.
