European Commission to revise PFOS entry in the POPs Regulation

On 4 December 2023, the European Commission published a draft delegated regulation aimed at revising a number of provisions concerning perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) and its derivatives under Regulation (EU) 2019/1021 on persistent organic pollutants, commonly referred to as the POPs Regulation.

PFOS under the POPs Regulation

PFOS and its derivatives are listed in Annex I of the POPs Regulation. The Annex I listing includes Unintentional Trace Contaminant (UTC) limits in substances, mixtures and articles.

PFOS was the first per- and polyfluoroalkyl compound (PFAS) to be regulated in the EU, and the UTC values were set a long time ago. It is therefore considered unlikely that PFOS is still present in substances and mixtures at the current UTC level of 10 mg/kg.

As regards the UTC for articles, the uses of PFOS (e.g textiles and leather coating, use in semiconductors, etc.) are very similar to those of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), another PFAS regulated under the POPs Regulation. There is no evidence that a different limit value than for PFOA is needed.

Modifications in the draft regulation for PFOS

For the reasons described above the following modifications for PFOS should be made:

• Align the wording of the substance identification for the entry of PFOS with that for PFOA (i.e. change ‘PFOS and its derivatives’ to ‘PFOS, its salts and PFOS-related compounds’).

• Introduction of a UTC level for PFOS and its salts of 0,025 mg/kg (in line with the one for PFOA)

• Reducing the UTC for PFOS-related substances in substances, mixtures, and articles to 1 mg/kg (in line with the one for PFOA)

• Delete of point 5 (availability of analytical methods).

• Delete a specific exemption for the use of PFOS as a mist suppressant for non-decorative hard chromium plating.

Timeline

The public consultation on the draft regulation is open until 1 January 2024. Feedback can be give here. The European Commission plans to adopt the Regulation in the first quarter of 2024.