Bipartisan Legislation to Reduce the Spread of Toxic PFAS at Commercial Airports Heads to the President to be Signed into Law
[WASHINGTON, D.C.]—Bipartisan legislation authored by U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Gary Peters (D-MI), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) to reduce the spread of toxic per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination at commercial airports is headed to the President’s desk to be signed into law, after unanimously passing the U.S. Senate.
“We’ve known for decades that some PFAS chemicals pose a dangerous risk to public health,” said Senator Duckworth. “Despite this knowledge, we’ve continued to use these harmful foams to put out fires—especially at airports—and continued to allow them to seep into our ground, our water and ultimately to our neighbors and loved ones. We need to do more to reduce the spread of toxic PFAS contamination using common-sense solutions that are already available, which is why I'm glad that the Preventing PFAS Runoff at Airports Act is heading to President Biden’s desk to be signed into law.”
The Preventing PFAS Runoff at Airports Act—which passed the U.S. House of Representatives in September—would deploy more existing Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) funding for commercial airports to purchase devices necessary to test their firefighting equipment without discharging toxic PFAS chemicals. This legislation would incentivize commercial airports to purchase the relatively low-cost devices—also referred to as an input-based testing system – to help limit and prevent exposure to PFAS, which are known as “forever chemicals” because they do not naturally break down.
The FAA has required commercial airports nationwide to use firefighting foam that contains toxic PFAS chemicals. For years airports were required to discharge this foam as part of routine, federally-mandated testing of their firefighting equipment. This put firefighters, the environment and the public at risk from exposure to toxic PFAS chemicals. The Preventing PFAS Runoff at Airports Act—which previously passed the Senate unanimously—would make more funding from the FAA’s Airport Improvement Program available to commercial airports to purchase devices that avoid discharging PFAS chemicals when testing firefighting equipment. It would also direct the FAA to identify options for reimbursing airports in Michigan and elsewhere that already acquired the devices without federal funding.
Last year, Duckworth’s bipartisan Drinking Water and Wastewater Infrastructure Act (DWWIA) was signed into law as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and included funding to address PFAS in drinking water. Additionally, Duckworth joined her Senate colleagues in writing a letter to Department of Defense (DoD) Secretary Lloyd Austin to urge for increased funding for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) testing and remediation and to improve PFAS-related planning.
“By making testing equipment that prevents the spread of PFAS contamination more affordable for airports, we can better protect not only our environment but also families, first responders and the Great Lakes from these toxic chemicals,” said Senator Peters. “My bipartisan Preventing PFAS Runoff at Airports Act will use commonsense, fiscally responsible means to reduce PFAS contamination in communities across the country and I’m pleased it will soon be law.”
“Commercial airports should have the necessary equipment to test their firefighting equipment in a manner that does not expose firefighters or the surrounding communities to toxic PFAS foams,” said Senator Moran. “Passing this legislation in the Senate will help promote the health and wellness of firefighters and aviation employees at commercial airports, as well as protect the communities that surround them.”
“The FAA requires regular testing of firefighting equipment, which may put undue burdens on regional, commercial airports and lead to the discharge of harmful chemicals like PFAS,” said Senator Capito. “Specifically, the Preventing PFAS Runoff at Airports Act would benefit several airports in West Virginia—like Yeager, Greenbrier and Mid-Ohio Valley—and improve overall safety of their operations. I’m pleased my colleagues joined our effort to advance this legislation through the Senate, recognizing the importance of testing airport rescue and firefighting equipment without dispersing dangerous PFAS chemicals into the environment.”
“As we work to ensure the safety of all travelers and airport workers, reducing the spread of toxic substances must be a priority,” said Senator Klobuchar. “This bill will make a real difference by aiding airports in obtaining the equipment needed to help prevent toxic substance contamination. Now that it has passed the Senate, I look forward to it being signed into law.”
“PFAS contaminations around airports is a serious problem with a very easy solution,” said Senator Lummis. “With simple testing solutions that are already funded under the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Airport Improvement Program, we can protect the environment without creating more burdensome regulations on small airports around Wyoming.”
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