Pillsbury Environmental and Natural Resource Lawyers Quoted in Bloomberg Law on PFAS Standards

The debate over how to dispose of PFAS chemicals or “forever chemicals,” has been heating up, as some communities and individuals may have already been exposed.

“Most incinerators aren’t built to burn waste at the high temperatures necessary to start breaking down PFAS,” said McNevin. “If someone hires a company to incinerate PFAS waste, the chemicals escape into the atmosphere, and if the EPA formally recognizes the chemicals as hazardous, that person may be liable under federal Superfund law.”

“Those who spread contamination when they intend to clean up can face arranger liability,” McNevin added. “The incinerator operator could also be liable as an entity with control over the facilities that released the chemicals.”

In a related story, the EPA recently announced that it would not set an enforceable limit for perchlorate, a chemical commonly used in rocket fuel. The decision could ultimately slow Superfund cleanups, especially in states that lack their own restrictions on the chemical, Bloomberg Law reported.

California and Massachusetts regulate the amount of perchlorate in their drinking water, but in other states, “there will be no overarching federal standard that state regulators will have to bear in mind at sites with perchlorate contamination,” said Zarghamee.

“One could imagine that responsible parties would be hesitant to incur significant expenses to address this contaminant without knowing the ‘target’ they would have to attain,” Zarghamee concluded.