Read the full article by Olivia Tempest (Smart Water Magazine)
“As regulators from Brussels to Washington move to reduce allowable levels of PFAS in water to just a few billionths of a gram, a new industry study warns that the technologies most widely used to manage these ‘forever chemicals’ are not designed to destroy them. The result is a widening gap between increasingly strict regulatory requirements and industry’s ability to permanently eliminate PFAS from contaminated water and waste streams.
PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, have been used since the 1940s because of their resistance to heat, water, oil and chemical degradation. More than 10,000 substances are included in the PFAS family, and their widespread use has resulted in detections in drinking water, wildlife and human populations worldwide. Their extremely strong carbon-fluorine bonds mean they can persist in the environment for decades.
Growing evidence about their potential health and environmental effects is accelerating regulatory action. A report published by the Global Impact Coalition (GIC) and Boston Consulting Group (BCG), PFAS Destruction: From Assessment to Industrial Deployment, identifies three trends reshaping the regulatory landscape: more companies facing PFAS monitoring obligations, lower permitted concentrations and a widening range of regulated compounds.”…