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Please note: This article concerns French legislation. The requirements described may not apply in other countries.
Fire-fighting foams contain fluorinated surfactants commonly known as PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances). They are part of the "forever chemicals" or "persistent organic pollutants" because they persist in the environment and can accumulate in living organisms.
European regulations restrict the use of these substances, particularly in fire-fighting foams.
What are we talking about?
According to European Regulations 2019/1021 of June 20, 2019 (POP Regulation) and 1907/2006 of December 18, 2006 (REACH), a fire-fighting foam is a mixture intended for fire suppression, which includes, but is not limited to, fire-fighting foam concentrates and fire-fighting foam solutions used to produce foam.
Several PFAS that may be present in your fire-fighting equipment are currently regulated.
You can find these in the following texts:
Exemptions still allow operators to use fire-fighting foams containing PFOA when intended for suppressing liquid fuel vapors and fighting liquid fuel fires (Class B fires) and already contained in systems, whether mobile or fixed, provided the following conditions are met:
- Until December 3, 2025, when:
o they are not used for training; they are not used for testing, unless all releases are contained;
o it is possible to contain all associated releases;
o stocks of fire-fighting foams that contain or may contain PFOA are managed in accordance with the waste provisions of the POP Regulation.
- PFOA is present as an unintentional trace contaminant and the concentrations of PFOA or any of its salts are less than or equal to 1 mg/kg (0.0001% by weight), or the concentrations of any PFOA-related compound or any combination of such compounds are less than or equal to 10 mg/kg (0.001% by weight). This limit applies until August 3, 2028.
Furthermore, an exemption to the ban on using PFOA is also possible for PFOA present as an unintentional trace contaminant if the sum of the concentrations of PFOA, PFOA salts, and PFOA-related compounds is less than or equal to 10 mg/kg (0.001% by weight) in fluorine-free fire-fighting foams sourced from fire-fighting equipment that has been cleaned using the best available techniques.
Exemptions still allow operators to use fire-fighting foams containing PFHxS when present as an unintentional trace contaminant in concentrations equal to or less than 0.1 mg/kg (0.00001% by weight) and when present in concentrated mixtures intended for use or used in the production of other fire-fighting foam mixtures.
This derogation will be reviewed and evaluated by the European Commission no later than August 28, 2026.
It is still possible to use firefighting foams containing PFHxA. However, starting from April 10, 2026, it will no longer be possible to purchase or use PFHxA, its salts, and related substances when they are present above a certain concentration (≥ 25 ppb for PFHxA and its salts or ≥ 1000 ppb for the sum of related substances) in:
- firefighting foams and foam concentrates intended for training and testing, with the exception of functional testing of fire suppression systems, provided that all emissions are contained;
- firefighting foams and foam concentrates intended for public fire services, except when these services are responding to industrial fires at Seveso establishments and use the foams and equipment solely for that purpose.
Since July 4, 2025, the use of PFCAs in firefighting foams has been prohibited when their concentration is greater than or equal to 25 ppb for the sum of C9-C14 PFCAs and their salts, or 260 ppb for the sum of C9-C14 PFCA-related substances.
Focus on the management of firefighting foams covered by the POP Regulation
Stocks of firefighting foams that contain or may contain PFOA and PFHxS, their salts, and/or related compounds for which no use is authorized must be managed in accordance with Article 7 of the POP Regulation. Specifically, they must:
- be separated from other waste to prevent any contamination,
- be disposed of or recovered without undue delay so that the POPs they contain are destroyed or irreversibly transformed, ensuring that the remaining waste and releases no longer exhibit POP characteristics.
The following disposal and recovery operations are authorized:
- D9 Physico-chemical treatment,
- D10 Incineration on land,
- R1 Use principally as a fuel or other means to generate energy,
- R4 Recycling or recovery of metals and metal compounds under certain conditions.
Conditional exemptions are possible.
Additional impact for operators of ICPE facilities subject to authorization
We will not revisit the requirement to identify PFAS and analyze discharges introduced by the order of June 20, 2023, for ICPE facilities subject to authorization (see article: PFAS substances: a closer look at the requirements).
It should also be noted that Law No. 2025-188 of February 27, 2025, has modified the tax base for the non-domestic pollution fee for operators of ICPE facilities subject to authorization. When an operator's activities result in the discharge of PFAS substances into water, either directly or through a collection system, the fee is based on the mass of PFAS substances discharged per year.
The fee is set at 100 euros per 100 grams discharged.