UK PFAS plan opts for research over regulatory crackdown

A UK government action plan on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), released Feb. 3, sets out a softer approach to managing the persistent chemicals than other European countries and opts for extensive monitoring projects rather than immediate regulatory action.

The Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (Defra) plan says that the agency has a “long-term vision” for a “science-based and proportionate” approach to managing PFAS, with an initial focus on studying their sources and effects.

The plan foresees a series of monitoring and research projects to assess the presence of PFAS in land and water—including legacy pollution—and in food packaging. Defra says it will assess the full extent of PFAS in England’s estuaries and coastal waters for the first time, which will provide it with a “stronger evidence base in which to consider future regulatory action.”

Another focus will be on steering industry toward safer alternatives to PFAS. Defra says there are currently no viable alternatives to certain uses of PFAS in industrial processes and medical applications. But safer alternatives to their use in everyday items, such as water-repellent clothing and footwear, “could be developed,” Defra says. The plan also foresees the government collaborating with industry on developing alternatives but stops short of promising more funding for research.

The London-based law firm Pinsent Masons says companies will welcome the government acknowledging that replacing PFAS presents challenges. “Collaboration with industry will be crucial to ensuring there is thorough understanding of these issues and in particular of the availability of alternatives, concerns about their cost and efficacy,” and realistic transition periods, Zoe Betts, partner in the firm, tells C&EN.

But environmental groups say the measures fall short of plans in the European Union (EU), where regulators are working on a bloc-wide restriction on PFAS. France and Denmark have already banned PFAS in some consumer products, including clothes and cosmetics.

The Wildlife and Countryside Link, a UK environmental coalition, laments that the Defra plan lacks binding phaseouts or timelines for PFAS in everyday products or a commitment to match the EU’s ambition. “Instead, the plan leans heavily on more monitoring, guidance, and future consultations, while PFAS continue to build up in rivers, soils, wildlife and even our own bodies,” Chloe Alexander, the group’s chemicals policy lead, says in a statement.

But some restrictions are in the UK pipeline. The government is considering a ban on PFAS in firefighting foams, and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is due to deliver an opinion on the matter later this year. The government will also consult on the first potential statutory limits for PFAS in drinking water in England later this year.

The action plan reiterates a commitment to reform the UK Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation, and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) legislation by December 2028 to bring it more closely in line with the EU. The HSE will recommend and consult on adding more PFAS to the UK REACH candidate list—which lists chemicals prioritized for regulatory action—in the summer.

A Jan. 29 report by the European Commission warned that if current levels of PFAS pollution persist in the EU, it could cost the bloc $519 billion in health and environmental damages by 2050. A total stop of PFAS production and use would reduce the cost to $390 billion, the commission says in what it describes as a “conservative estimate” of the true societal burden of PFAS pollution.