posted on 2021-09-30, 19:44authored byJuliane Glüge, Rachel London, Ian T. Cousins, Jamie DeWitt, Gretta Goldenman, Dorte Herzke, Rainer Lohmann, Mark Miller, Carla A. Ng, Sharyle Patton, Xenia Trier, Zhanyun Wang, Martin Scheringer
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl
substances (PFAS) are a class of substances
for which there are widespread concerns about their extreme persistence
in combination with toxic effects. It has been argued that PFAS should
only be employed in those uses that are necessary for health or safety
or are critical for the functioning of society and where no alternatives
are available (“essential-use concept”). Implementing
the essential-use concept requires a sufficient understanding of the
current uses of PFAS and of the availability, suitability, and hazardous
properties of alternatives. To illustrate the information requirements
under the essential-use concept, we investigate seven different PFAS
uses, three in consumer products and four industrial applications.
We investigate how much information is available on the types and
functions of PFAS in these uses, how much information is available
on alternatives, their performance and hazardous properties and, finally,
whether this information is sufficient as a basis for deciding on
the essentiality of a PFAS use. The results show (i) the uses of PFAS
are highly diverse and information on alternatives is often limited
or lacking; (ii) PFAS in consumer products often are relatively easy
to replace; (iii) PFAS uses in industrial processes can be highly
complex and a thorough evaluation of the technical function of each
PFAS and of the suitability of alternatives is needed; (iv) more coordination
among PFAS manufacturers, manufacturers of alternatives to PFAS, users
of these materials, government authorities, and other stakeholders
is needed to make the process of phasing out PFAS more transparent
and coherent.