Increasing Public and Regulatory Scrutiny of PFAS

Last month the U.S. EPA hosted simultaneous press conferences in every EPA Region to roll out an Action Plan for addressing growing public concern and potential human health risks posed by polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the environment and household products. As part of the Action Plan, EPA set a goal of proposing drinking water maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) for two PFAS constituents, PFOA and PFOS, by the end of 2019. U.S. EPA’s widely publicized announcement signaled that EPA has elevated its priority for addressing the PFAS problem, and highlights the public and political pressure facing EPA to take action. While the federal regulatory process will still require years, EPA announced real-time initiatives to give communities and state regulators more insight into where PFAS may be an issue.

These changes, combined with a growing list of States (e.g., New York State has published notice of intent to establish MCLs for PFOA and PFOS of 10 part per trillion each, in 2019), indicate that the U.S. is transitioning to a regulatory framework where PFAS will be classified as hazardous constituents that need to be remediated in environmental media (e.g., soil and water supplies).

This webinar will present an overview of current and expected future PFAS regulations and their impact on business operations, including transactional due diligence, permitting, remediation, and risk communication and tort litigation.  

Panelists

• Jennifer Giblin, Senior Counsel, Crowell & Moring
• Peter Condron, Partner, Crowell & Moring
• Neal Durant, Senior Principal Consultant, Geosyntec
• Seth Kellogg, Senior Geologist, Geosyntec