Long-chain Perfluorocarboxylic Acids (LC-PFCAs), their salts, and their precursors - information sheet

Update:

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a class of over 4,700 human-made substances. In April 2021, the Government of Canada indicated that it is considering activities that would address PFAS as a class. Visit the PFAS web page for the latest information on publications and actions being considered under the Government’s Chemicals Management Plan related to PFAS.

On this page

• Overview
• About these substances
• Ecological exposure
• Key ecological effects (hazard)
• Risk assessment outcome
  • Screening assessment conclusion
• Preventive actions and reducing risk
• Related information

Overview

• The Government of Canada conducted a science-based evaluation, called an ecological screening assessment, to address the potential for harm to the environment from LC-PFCAs, their salts and their precursors. This assessment was completed in 2012.
• Under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA 1999), the risk posed by a substance is determined by considering both its hazardous properties (its potential to cause adverse ecological effects) and the amount of exposure there is to the environment. A substance may have hazardous properties; however, the risk to the environment may be low depending upon the level of exposure.
  • More information on assessing risk can be found in the Overview of Risk Assessment and related fact sheets, particularly on Types of Risk Assessment Documents.
• LC-PFCAs were assessed for ecological risk as these were emerging chemicals of concern. Available data demonstrated that some LC-PFCAs were bioaccumulative, persistent, subject to long-range transport, and had widespread and increasing concentrations in Arctic wildlife. 
• The assessment focused on LC-PFCAs, but also considered their precursors given similar use applications and their potential to degrade to LC-PFCAs. While the assessment did not consider the additive effects of LC-PFCAs and their precursors, it is recognized that the precursors contribute to the ultimate environmental loading of LC-PFCAs. Precursors may also play a key role in the long-range transport and subsequent degradation to LC-PFCAs in the Canadian Arctic.
• As a result of the screening assessment, the Government concluded that LC-PFCAs, their salts and their precursors are harmful to the environment.

About these substances

• Long-chain perfluorocarboxylic acids, also known as PFCAs, are man-made chemicals.
• According to information gathered by the Government, C₉ PFCA was used for surfactant applications, and in the production of large molecules called fluorotelomers.
• LC-PFCAs were rarely used intentionally in commercial products. However, precursors to LC-PFCAs which were present in commercial products, such as fluorotelomer-based substances,  can degrade to LC-PFCAs.

Ecological exposure

• Although data was not available on the direct release of LC-PFCAs to the Canadian environment, evidence suggested that their precursors were released to the environment where they may have been transported long distances and degraded to produce LC-PFCAs.
• Potential sources of LC-PFCAs included the breakdown of their precursors during wastewater and sewage treatment processes, the oxidation of their precursors in the atmosphere, and the degradation of commercial products containing their precursors.

Key ecological effects (hazard)

• LC-PFCAs and their salts are considered to have ecological effects of concern, such as reduced fertility over successive generations and estrogenic effects on fish, due to their persistence and their potential to accumulate in and cause harm to organisms.

Risk assessment outcome

• It was determined that there is risk of harm to the environment from LC-PFCAs and their salts based on a weight-of-evidence approach. Considerations included the persistence, bioaccumulation, widespread occurrence, temporal trends in some species (such as Canadian Arctic birds, terrestrial and marine mammals), long-range transport and concentrations of LC-PFCAs in the environment and biota (including remote areas of Canada).
• Additionally, LC-PFCAs and their salts, meet the persistence criteria but not the bioaccumulation criteria as set out in the Persistence and Bioaccumulation Regulations of CEPA 1999. Nevertheless, the weight of evidence was sufficient to conclude that LC-PFCAs and their salts bioaccumulate (the increase in concentrations of a substance in the tissues of organisms due to uptake from all sources, such as water and food) and biomagnify (the increasing concentration of a substance in the tissues of organisms at successively higher levels in a food chain) in terrestrial and marine mammals.
• The Government published the Final Ecological Screening Assessment on Long-chain (C₉-C₂₀) Perfluorocarboxylic Acids, their Salts, and their Precursors on August 25, 2012.

Screening assessment conclusion

• As a result of the final screening assessment, the Government concluded that LC-PFCAs, their salts, and their precursors are entering the environment at levels that are harmful to the environment.  

Preventive actions and reducing risk

• The Government published the Proposed Risk Management Approach for Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA), its Salts, and its Precursors and Long-chain (C₉-C₂₀) Perfluorocarboxylic Acids (PFCAs), their Salts, and their Precursors for public consultation on August 25, 2012.
• LC-PFCAs, their salts and their precursors were added to Schedule 1 to CEPA 1999, also called the List of Toxic Substances.
• The Government took risk management action on long-chain perfluorocarboxylic acids to address ecological concerns, including the use of the Prohibition of Certain Toxic Substances Regulations, 2012.
• Additional information on therisk management of substances addressed under the CMP is available.

Related information

• These substances may be found in products available to consumers. Canadians should follow any safety warnings and directions on product labels and dispose of products responsibly.
• In February 2023, a consultation document was published on a proposed objective that recommends a single treatment-based value for a group of PFAS in drinking water.
• Canadians who may be exposed to these substances in the workplace should consult with their employer and an occupational health and safety (OHS) representative about safe handling practices, applicable laws, and requirements under OHS legislation and the Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS).