PFAS IC

December 1, 2023

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December 1, 2023

Vicki Quint

HazMat personnel need to be aware of your own state’s laws and regulations on PFAS. Individual states have taken the lead on PFAS because USEPA has been unable to stay up on the issue of protecting citizens. Regulations are changing quickly.

As fire departments work through obtaining a ‘clean’ firefighting foam, they should be aware of California Proposition 65 (Prop 65). This 1986 law came into effect with the intention of allowing consumers to make informed decisions on whether to purchase a product.

Proposition 65 requires businesses to provide warnings to Californians about significant exposures to chemicals that cause cancer, birth defects or other reproductive harm. These chemicals can be in the products that Californians purchase, in their homes or workplaces, or that are released into the environment.

Prop 65 applies to any company including internet businesses that sell products to anyone in California.This law could help all fire departments determine and obtain safe products for their own fire department.

“Proposition 65 has two primary substantive provisions: (1) a warning requirement and (2) a discharge prohibition. The warning requirement provides that businesses with 10 or more employees must provide ‘clear and reasonable warnings’ before knowingly or intentionally exposing individuals in California to any of the chemicals that are listed as known to cause cancer or reproductive harm.”

Section 15 of an SDS should list Prop 65 chemicals.

The attention to California occurs because California is larger by area and population than several European countries. In 2022, California was ready to become the world’s 4^th largest economy.

When Californian automobiles were required to meet certain emission standards under the federal Clean Air Act passed in 1970s, the state was granted its own authority to set their own pollution rules on autos because of the bad air quality in Southern California.

The auto makers were obviously not going to be able to maintain two production lines: one for California and one for the other 49 states. So, all automobiles manufacturers basically had to meet California standards. Today 16 other states and Washington, DC follow the California plan which is around 40% of the US market for cars, SUVs and pick-up trucks.

The AFFF Angle

An Aqueous Film-Forming Foam (AFFF) incident occurred in Connecticut.

“The Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) is investigating after Burlington [CT] firefighters allegedly used firefighting foam illegally to put out a car fire. A DEEP spokesperson said fire officials responded to a fully engulfed car fire on Route 6 Wednesday night. Universal Gold AFFF foam [National Foam], which contains the chemical PFAS, was used to put out the fire, they said. No one was put in harm’s way during the fire, according to DEEP.”

It was reported that a minimum of one to three gallons was used in extinguishing the fire.

“The type of foam used is no longer allowed in routine firefighting situations. This is because PFAS is a group of chemicals, per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances, which can be dangerous if it gets into rivers and groundwater.

Officials are figuring out where to dispose of the collected waste at a secure chemical disposal facility out of state.

DEEP said the state of Connecticut typically seeks to recover costs from those responsible for releasing chemicals. They said it’s possible Burlington fire officials will be asked to pay these funds.”

Fire departments may find themselves being fined for using fluorinated firefighting foams which means their own citizens, towns and cities will be covering these costs. Some $10,000 fines have already occurred. DEEP is responsible for the emergency foam trailers.

Currently, more than half of the states’ Attorneys General have taken legal action against PFAS manufacturers and key users.

Individual states have been working on foam take-back programs for the last several years because of USEPA delays. The State of Indiana included all AFFF products in their firefighting foam collection program, not just foam products dating prior to 2003. Other states have used the 2003 production date on firefighting foams as a cut off for state-wide collections.

All AFFF contain PFAS.

C6 AFFF products contain PFAS.

According to the new military Department of Defense MilSpec which was issued in January 2023, the new term “Fluorine-free’ indicates the foam concentrate will contain a maximum of 1 ppb PFAS.

Independent third-party firefighting foam testing currently available:

NFPA 18
UL 162
ICAO A, B & C
EN 1568: Parts 1-4
LASTFIRE
Total Fluorine Testing
US Forestry
MIL-SPEC to F3, strictly land-based and freshwater use only

Incident Command for PFAS, the Foam Exposure Committee (FEC) recommends the following actions because there is no way presently to remove PFAS from the human body:

Identify your fire department’s current firefighting foam product – does it contain PFAS?
Stop using firefighting foam that contains PFAS which means all AFFF – minimum. The definition of AFFF is that it contains fluorine / PFAS. AFFF designations include AR-AFFF products.
Properly dispose of foams containing PFAS based upon your state’s recommendations.
If possible, replace fire apparatus including anything that PFAS was used in or with.

“Cleaning out” an apparatus foam tank can still mean PFAS remains in the tank. A three wash and rinse will contribute to a quadrupling of the wastewater. Basically, your rinse water is now batch mixed foam product.

“Most currently available remediation technologies do not actually destroy PFAS,” Minakata said. “Instead, these technologies transfer PFAS from one phase to another. They are conveniently implemented in order to meet the new EPA regulations. But it’s going to backfire. Unless we fully destroy the structure of PFAS, we’re bound to encounter larger, more fundamental problems.”

At present, there is no known method of completely removing PFAS from an apparatus foam tank, human blood or the body. PFAS is basically being taken from Point A to Point Z while contaminating everything in between.

Remediation costs for AFFF run-off water is cost prohibitive. PFAS can be anywhere that firefighting foam has been used. Be certain your new firefighting foam is fluorine-free. You can check for this in Section 15 of the SDS or MSDS.

When you remove fluorine from the firefighting foam, you have a wetting agent.

There are fire tested F3 products readily available now. The FEC F3, fire-tested product list is posted at the Fire Department Safety Officers Association (FDSOA) website under Safety Resources (www.fdsoa.org). These foams were tested for Total Fluorine by PIGE.

There are no regulations requiring a fire department to use an AFFF!

The National Law Review, Prop 65 and PFOS – Impact of the Carcinogenic Finding On Businesses, December 10, 2021, https://www.natlawreview.com/article/prop-65-and-pfos-impact-carcinogenic-finding-businesses and State of California, Environmental Protection Agency, Chemicals Known to the State to Cause Cancer or Reproductive Toxicity,11- Aug 2023, https://oehha.ca.gov/media/downloads/proposition-65//p65chemicalslist.pdf

OEHHA, About Proposition 65, accessed 11/10/2023, https://oehha.ca.gov/proposition-65/about-proposition-65#:~:text=Proposition%2065%20requires%20businesses%20to,are%20released%20into%20the%20environment.

The National Law Review, Prop 65 and PFOS – Impact of the Carcinogenic Finding On Businesses, December 10, 2021, https://www.natlawreview.com/article/prop-65-and-pfos-impact-carcinogenic-finding-businesses and State of California, Environmental Protection Agency, Chemicals Known to the State to Cause Cancer or Reproductive Toxicity,11- Aug 2023, https://oehha.ca.gov/media/downloads/proposition-65//p65chemicalslist.pdf

Prop 65 Is Coming for PFAS-California Companies, Take Note, Lisa Whitley Coleman, Apr 14, 2021, https://ehsdailyadvisor.blr.com/2021/04/prop-65-is-coming-for-pfas-california-companies-take-note/

Los Angeles Times, EPA restores California’s authority to set its own auto pollution rules, Russ Mitchell, March 9, 2022, https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2022-03-09/epa-restores-californias-authority-to-set-its-own-auto-pollution-rules

NBC, DEEP Investigates Illegal Use of PFAS in Burlington, December 23, 2021, https://www.nbcconnecticut.com/news/local/deep-investigates-illegal-use-of-pfas-in-burlington/2678512/

ibid.

Safer States, More than half of US State Attorneys General have taken action against PFAS manufacturers and key users, August 24, 2023, Press Statement, https://saferstates.org/news/more-than-half-of-us-state-attorneys-general-have-taken-action-against-pfas-manufacturers-and-key-users/

U.S. Department of Defense, Military Specification for Fire Extinguishing Agent, Fluorine-Free (F3) Liquid Concentration for Land-Based, Fresh Water Applications, Jan. 12, 2023, https://media.defense.gov/2023/Jan/12/2003144157/-1/-1/1/MILITARY-SPECIFICATION-FOR-FIRE-EXTINGUISHING-AGENT-FLUORINE-FREE-FOAM-F3-LIQUID-CONCENTRATE-FOR-LAND-BASED-FRESH-WATER-APPLICATIONS.PDF