Proposed rule lowers threshold, concentrations for reporting PFAS releases
Proposal would eliminate exemption used to avoid disclosure of certain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) releases.
On Monday, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed a rule that would improve reporting on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) to the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) by, among other proposed changes, eliminating an exemption that allows facilities to avoid reporting information on PFAS when those chemicals are used in small, or de minimis, concentrations. Because PFAS are used at low concentrations in many products, this rule would ensure that covered industry sectors and federal facilities that make or use TRI-listed PFAS will no longer be able to rely on the de minimis exemption to avoid disclosing their PFAS releases and other waste management quantities for these chemicals.
“PFAS continue to pose an urgent threat to our country and communities deserve to know if they may be exposed because of the way these chemicals are being managed, recycled, or released,” says EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “By removing this reporting loophole, we’re advancing the work set out in the Agency’s PFAS Strategic Roadmap and ensuring that companies report information for even small concentrations of PFAS. We’ll make this information available to the public so EPA and other federal, state and local agencies can use it to help best protect health and the environment.”