BOSTON, April 24,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The signing of the Stockholm
Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in 2001 marked a
historic moment, as it was the first global treaty aimed at
eliminating or restricting chemicals harmful to human and
environmental health. The addition of perfluorooctanesulfonic acid
(PFOS) to the Convention in 2009 marked yet another milestone, as
PFOS and its related substances became the first of the PFAS family
to be regulated on an international level. PFAS stands for per- and
poly-fluoroalkyl substances and are colloquially called 'forever
chemicals' for their persistence in the environment. PFOS would not
be the only 'forever chemical' regulated by the Convention, as PFOA
(perfluorooctanoic acid) and PFHxS (perfluorohexane sulfonate) were
added in 2019 and 2022, respectively.
Despite the Stockholm Convention's international reach, its
inclusion of just three PFAS chemicals only scratches the surface
of the PFAS family, which, under the OECD definition of PFAS,
includes nearly 5,000 substances. Given that research is
increasingly identifying further risks that different PFAS pose to
human and environmental health, activists and legislators worldwide
are beginning to take a more active approach to regulating
PFAS.
With a new framework of PFAS regulations potentially developing
internationally, it is essential for businesses to understand the
new PFAS regulatory landscape to identify its potential effect on
them. This is particularly relevant for businesses in emerging
high-tech industries, whose technologies may rely on the
utilization of PFAS. In IDTechEx's report, 'Per- and
Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) 2024: Emerging Applications,
Alternatives, Regulations', a deep dive into the regulations
surrounding PFAS in 8 different countries/regions is provided
so that businesses in five key emerging markets could understand
their impact in their respective industries. This article provides
a brief look into the global regulatory landscape of PFAS in three
key regions: Asia-Pacific,
USA, and Europe.
Asia-Pacific (APAC):
Aligning with the Stockholm Convention
In major APAC countries such as China, Japan,
and South Korea, there appears to
be a general trend towards adopting and enforcing the restrictions
on the specific PFAS outlined in the Stockholm Convention. This is
most notable for China, which is a
major chemical producer (including PFAS like PFOA). However,
China does appear to be increasing
regulations on its chemical industry broadly, having published the
first List of New Pollutants for Priority Management in 2023.
Still, for the most part, APAC countries do not appear to be
moving towards broader PFAS bans beyond those PFAS identified in
the Stockholm Convention. However, there are some instances of PFAS
regulations being introduced for specific industries. For example,
South Korea proposed the ban of 8
PFAS in the cosmetics industry in 2022.
Europe: The most aggressive
approach to PFAS regulation
The introduction of the universal PFAS restriction by the
European Union (EU) was by far the most aggressive approach to
regulating PFAS to be considered. Under this restriction, the
manufacture, import, and use of all PFAS would be banned in the EU,
except for very specific exceptions. Currently, the European
Commission is debating the proposal, having received over 5,000
from relevant stakeholders last year.
The universal PFAS proposal does allow for time-limited
exceptions, where certain industries lacking an appropriate
alternative to PFAS or needing time to ramp up production of the
alternative would have more time to comply with regulations. For
example, in the initial proposal, proton exchange membranes for
fuel cells were identified as an area requiring a time-limited
exception. PFSA (perfluorosulfonic acid) membranes are key
materials in this field, and IDTechEx's report examines potential
alternatives for this key fluorinated material.
United States: A mixed
approach to PFAS on a federal and state level
The United States (US) is a key
economic market for PFAS, but the approaches to PFAS regulations in
the US are far from settled. For starters, the US is technically
not a signatory to the Stockholm Convention. On a federal level,
the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is responsible for
regulating and managing harmful chemicals, and a key priority for
the US EPA currently is to control the level of PFAS found in
municipal water supplies. Still, at a federal level, no PFAS is
definitively banned; instead, the US EPA has regulations in place
to prevent companies from resuming the manufacture, import, and use
of phased-out PFAS. There are also programs to encourage the
voluntary phase out of certain PFAS by companies.
However, at the state level, there are far more aggressive
regulations on PFAS being adopted. Both Maine and Minnesota have adopted universal PFAS
restrictions similar to the restrictions being debated in the EU.
Other states are restricting PFAS in key consumer-facing sectors,
like food packaging and cosmetics. A key market to monitor will be
California; they are already
restricting PFAS in numerous industries, and in 2024, a state
legislator introduced a bill to ban all PFAS in the state.
For more information on the IDTechEx report 'Per- and
Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) 2024: Emerging Applications,
Alternatives, Regulations', including downloadable sample pages,
please visit www.IDTechEx.com/PFAS.
For the full portfolio of sustainability market research from
IDTechEx, please visit
www.IDTechEx.com/Research/Sustainability.
Upcoming free-to-attend webinar
Forever Chemicals: Insights into Regulations Affecting
PFAS and Potential Alternatives
Sona Dadhania, Senior Technology
Analyst at IDTechEx and author of this report, will be presenting a
free-to-attend webinar on the topic on Thursday 2 May 2024 - Forever Chemicals: Insights into
Regulations Affecting PFAS and Potential Alternatives.
Discussion points in this webinar include:
- The definition and scope of PFAS
- Concerns about the effects of PFAS exposure
- Regulatory frameworks impacting PFAS worldwide
- Emerging applications utilizing PFAS
- Potential alternatives for PFAS in selected emerging
applications
Please click here to check timings and register for your
specific time zone.
If you are unable to make the date, please register anyway to
receive the links to the on-demand recording (available for a
limited time) and webinar slides as soon as they are available.
About IDTechEx:
IDTechEx provides trusted independent research on emerging
technologies and their markets. Since 1999, we have been
helping our clients to understand new technologies, their supply
chains, market requirements, opportunities and forecasts. For more
information, contact research@IDTechEx.com or
visit www.IDTechEx.com.
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press@IDTechEx.com
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SOURCE IDTechEx