Over $10 billion settlement! PFAS compliance should be taken seriously

Recently, a leading company in chemical industry announced a preliminary settlement agreement worth up to $10.3 billion to resolve water pollution claims related to "permanent chemical substances" (PFAS), which has attracted widespread attention.

This is not the first case against PFAS in Europe and the North America. Not long ago, three renowned world-class chemical manufacturers announced that they agreed to pay a total of 4 billion US dollars to resolve allegations of PFAS polluting water sources. In March this year, the EU ECHA Enforcement Forum also agreed to carry out special enforcement actions against PFCAs to check whether restricted perfluorocarboxylic acids (PFCAs) and related substances exist in consumer products.

All the above show that with the continuous elevation of social awareness of the hazards related to PFAS, the global control of PFAS continues to be more and more stringent.

Do your products need to be tested for PFAS?

How much do you know about PFAS?

· What is PFAS
PFAS means Per-and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances, which covers roughly 5000+ substances including Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid （PFOS）、Perfluorooctanoic acid （PFOA）、Perfluorononan-1-Oic Acid （PFNA）、Perfluorohexane-1-sulphonic acid（PFHxS）and Perfluorohexanoic acid （PFHxA）…etc. PFAS has been used in industrial and consumer products since the 1940s. In recent years, due to the increasing attention to PFAS substances in different countries, regions and related companies, it has become a hot topic in the market.

· Applications and uses of PFAS

With strong C-F bonds, PFAS has strong chemical stability, surface activity, excellent thermal stability and hydrophobic and oleophobic properties. They can make products with oil-repellent, waterproof, anti-fouling, chemical-resistant and high-temperature-resistant properties.
PFAS is widely used in many fields, including food packaging materials, textiles and clothing, electronic appliances, children products, fire-fighting supplies, etc.

· Hazards of PFAS
Human exposure to PFAS is widespread due to the wide variety of PFAS chemicals that often found in complex mixtures and in various daily products. High levels of PFAS can induce hepatotoxicity, developmental toxicity, immunotoxicity, endocrine disruption and potential carcinogenicity. In addition, PFAS in soil, water or air can be taken up by plants and animals, leading to food contamination.

· Warm Reminders from CTT
It can be seen from the recent frequent updates of PFAS policy requirements in various countries that the world attaches great importance to human health and environmental problems caused by PFAS. Related business have to pay close attention to the development of PFAS regulations and screen their products for PFAS substances to ensure the products be smoothly distributed in the concerned markets within the regulatory framework.