PHOENIX – The Department of Energy is expected to hand down more guidance this spring and summer on what agency sites should do about a group of synthetic chemicals first widely-used during the Manhattan Project days for uranium-separation.
That was the word here last Thursday from Karen Skubal, an environmental engineer with the DOE’s Office of Environmental Management, helping to coordinate agency efforts on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. Expect the agency to release guidance on disposal and sampling this spring, she said.
PFAS is a high-priority issue for DOE and the Environmental Protection Agency as the feds try to get a fuller understanding of the toxicity and potential health risks associated with the chemical commonly found in fire-fighting foam and a slew of household goods, said Skubal. PFAS have already been deemed a public health concern by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, according to the DOE website on the subject.
“You can’t just say you can’t use this anymore,” Skubal said. “You have to identify alternatives.” “We are preparing a research plan now.”
Federal regulations for PFAS could be percolating by this summer, she told a roundtable session sponsored by the Energy Facility Contractors Group.
“They don’t biodegrade easily,” Skubal said of PFAS. The DOE has already had its nuclear weapon sites report inventories of PFAS and requires federal properties to report any new discharges of these chemicals, Skubal said.
“Stay tuned on a whole lot of fun coming down on PFAS,” said Renee Echols, president and owner of DOE contractor Firewater Associates, who chaired the session.
