Senate Passes Bill To Restrict Some Uses Of Firefighting Foams With PFAS; Clean Water Action Says Bill Is Meant To Protect Industry

On October 29, the Senate passed Senate Bill 919 (Yaw-R-Lycoming) by a vote of 40 to 9.  The bill establishes statewide uniform requirements restricting some uses of Class B firefighting foams containing added PFAS chemistries for training, restricting their use in testing, while also allowing for continued sale and use against fires.

“Firefighters can face an extremely higher level of PFAS exposure compared to other emergency responders,” Sen. Gene Yaw, prime sponsor of the bill and Majority Chair of the Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee. “PFAS contamination is a national public health challenge, and this bill is a commonsense response, which has already been adopted by many states. This bill will undoubtedly protect firefighters moving forward, while also safeguarding our ground and surface water from contamination.”

On October 28, Clean Water Action wrote to members of the Senate urging them to oppose Senate Bill 919 (Yaw-R-Lycoming) which restricts the use of firefighting foams containing PFAS chemicals saying the bill was introduced to protect the industry by the Fluorine Council and the Foam Manufacturers Alliance.  Click Here for more.

  The bill now goes to the House for action.

A second PFAS-related bill-- House Bill 1410 (Stephens-R-Montgomery) which would use local funds which would otherwise pay state taxes for cleaning up PFAS contamination, rather than relying on responsible parties to pay for cleanups-- was referred into and reported out of the Senate Appropriations Committee (Senate Fiscal Note & Summary) and is on the Senate Calendar for action.

For more information on PFAS issues in Pennsylvania, visit DEP’s PFAS: What They Are webpage.
[Posted: October 30, 2019]  www.PaEnvironmentDigest.com