The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has published the updated proposal for the restriction of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) under the EU’s chemicals regulation, REACH.
PFAS are a set of chemicals used in everything from textiles, food packaging, lubricants, refrigerants, electronics to construction and more. The concern is that these so-called ‘forever chemicals’ take an extremely long time to break down and will accumulate in the environment.
“Some scientists argue that the planetary boundaries for PFAS have already been exceeded, and human biomonitoring studies show that the cocktail of PFAS to which parts of the general population are exposed to through different sources (e.g. food, drinking water, products containing PFAS, dust, air) already may result in health risks,” the draft report notes.
In 2023, the agency published the first details of the proposed restriction of around 10,000 types of PFAS with the aim of reducing PFAS emissions into the European environment and making products and processes safer. At the time the ECHA noted that all PFAS in the scope of the proposal were very persistent in the environment.
“If their releases are not minimised, people, plant and animals will be increasingly exposed, and without a restriction such levels will be reached that have negative effects on people’s health and the environment,” the ECHA said, estimating that around 4.4 million tonnes of PFAS would end up in the environment over the next 30 years - unless action is taken.
Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden submitted the update, as well as the initial proposal in 2023. The ECHA said the group had now completed their evaluation of the more than 5,600 scientific and technical comments received from third parties during the 2023 consultation.
The five countries have now carried out assessments for eight sectors using PFAS that were named in the initial proposal, including printing; sealing; machinery; medical applications such as packaging and excipients for pharmaceuticals; military uses; explosives; technical textiles; and broader industrial uses, such as solvents and catalysts.
They have also considered alternative options beyond a full ban or a ban with time-limited derogations - legal exemptions - for certain applications. These would mean allowing the continued manufacture and use of PFAS where the risks can be controlled. These alternative options have been assessed for areas including PFAS manufacturing; transport; electronics and semiconductors; energy; sealing applications; machinery applications; and technical textiles: the draft document outlines the costs of a ban versus derogations with time limits across a range of uses.
The ECHA’s scientific committees for Risk Assessment and for Socio-Economic Analysis continues to evaluate the proposed restriction and it plans to provide the European Commission with its opinions “as soon as possible”. This assessment document may still be updated further, based on the evaluation of the committees, made up of independent experts, the ECHA added. The European Commission will ultimately decide on the restriction in consultation with the EU Member States.
Back in June the ECHA set out the current timetable for the evaluation process by the two committees.
The European Union is far from alone in trying to work out how to deal with PFAS in the environment. In the UK, for example, the Environmental Audit Committee is also looking into the topic of PFAS. The House of Commons committee is considering whether enough is being done to understand fully the risks of PFAS in the UK and whether research institutions and the Environment Agency are equipped to monitor their impact, as well as examining the UK’s regulatory framework for the use and disposal of PFAS. It is also considering whether UK registration, evaluation, authorisation and restriction of chemicals (REACH) is adequate.
In the US the Environmental Protection Agency recently pushed back deadlines for compliance around some types of PFAS in drinking water, but also launched a new ‘PFAS OUT’ initiative.
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