Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) - information sheet

Publications summarized:

• Draft State of Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) Report (published on May 20, 2023 for a public comment period ending on July 19, 2023).
  • Supporting document: Ecological State of the Science Report on Short-chain (C4 – C7) Perfluorocarboxylic Acids (SC-PFCAs); Short-chain (C4 – C7) Perfluorosulfonic Acids (SC-PFSAs); Long-chain (C9 – C20) Perfluorosulfonic Acids (LC-PFSAs)
• Risk Management Scope for Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) (published on May 20, 2023 for a public comment period ending on July 19, 2023). Risk management is proposed.
• Associated notice: Canada Gazette, Part I: Vol. 157, No. 20 – May 20, 2023

On this page

• Overview
• About these substances
• Human and ecological exposures
• Key health and ecological effects (hazard)
• Consideration of subpopulations who may be more susceptible or highly exposed
• Report findings
  • Proposed conclusions
• Existing risk management
• Preventive actions and risk reduction
• Related resources

Overview

• The Government of Canada prepared a qualitative assessment of the fate, sources, occurrence, and potential impacts of PFAS on the environment and human health to inform decision-making on PFAS in Canada.
• On the basis of what is known about well-studied PFAS and the potential for other PFAS to behave similarly, the Government is proposing that substances in the class of PFAS are entering or may enter the environment at levels that are harmful or may be harmful to the environment and to human health.

About these substances

• Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a class of over 4,700 human-made substances. New PFAS are continually being developed and notified to the Government of Canada.
• PFAS have a wide range of uses in products available to consumers, industrial applications, and specialized applications. Some typical uses of PFAS include surfactants, lubricants, and repellents (for dirt, water, and grease). PFAS can also be found in certain firefighting foams (that is, aqueous film-forming foams [AFFF]), textiles (for example, carpets, furniture, and clothing), cosmetics, and in food packaging materials.
• PFAS are extremely persistent in the environment; are prone to accumulation; are mobile, able to migrate locally and over long distances; and are commonly detected in the environment and humans.

Human and ecological exposures

• People living in Canada can be exposed to PFAS from various sources such as food and food packaging, cosmetics, products available to consumers, ambient air, indoor air and dust, and drinking water.
• Canadian biomonitoring studies (including the Canadian Health Measures Survey, the Maternal-Infant Research on Environmental Chemicals Study, and northern studies under the Northern Contaminants Program) have found certain PFAS in the blood of Canadians. Similar observations have been made in international biomonitoring surveys.
• PFAS is found nearly everywhere in the environment, including air, surface and groundwater, oceans and soils, as well as in wastewater, landfill leachate, sewage sludge and contaminated sites worldwide. Some PFAS and their precursors can be transported long distances either in the air or in water.
• PFAS contamination is present throughout Canada, including in remote areas such as the Arctic, and is not limited to a few sources and areas.
• Certain contaminated sites have elevated concentrations of PFAS, including those associated with the use of aqueous film-forming foams through fighting fuel fires, training activities and maintenance of firefighting equipment.

Key health and ecological effects (hazard)

• Effects of concern of PFAS on human health include effects on the liver, kidney, thyroid, immune system, nervous system, metabolism and bodyweight, and reproduction and development. These effects are commonly reported in laboratory and epidemiological studies with well-studied PFAS.
• In the environment, effects of PFAS on wildlife include toxicity to the immune and nervous systems, and general effects on growth, reproduction and development. Certain PFAS have been found to bioaccumulate in living organisms. PFAS have been reported to significantly biomagnify (accumulate to increasingly higher levels up the food chain) in air-breathing organisms (for example, mammals, birds), which may increase the likelihood of adverse effects being seen. Certain PFAS have also been shown to have hazardous effects on plants.
• Humans and the environment are likely to be exposed to multiple PFAS at the same time. This cumulative exposure could increase the potential for adverse effects.

Consideration of subpopulations who may be more susceptible or highly exposed

• There are groups of individuals within the Canadian population who, due to greater susceptibility or greater exposure, may be more vulnerable to experiencing adverse health effects from exposure to substances.
• A number of subpopulations were identified as having a potential for greater exposure to PFAS. Some Northern Indigenous communities (as measured in adults, including pregnant women), Indigenous youth and children in other parts of Canada, and firefighters internationally were found to have elevated levels of certain PFAS. Canadian firefighters and people living near sites contaminated with PFAS (for example, associated with the use of aqueous film-forming foams for firefighting) may also be disproportionately exposed to higher levels of PFAS.

Report findings

While there is limited information available on many PFAS across the class, based on current information:

• The broad use of PFAS and their presence throughout the environment has resulted in continuous environmental and human exposure to multiple PFAS, as supported by both environmental and human monitoring studies, including higher exposures in certain human subpopulations. Certain well-studied PFAS can adversely affect multiple systems and organs in both humans and wildlife.
• Certain PFAS have been shown to have the potential to bioaccumulate and biomagnify in food webs to an extent that can cause adverse effects in biota, even at low environmental concentrations.
• Recent information on well-studied PFAS, particularly perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), shows negative human health effects at progressively lower levels than indicated by previous studies.
• The potential for cumulative exposure and effects are important considerations as most wildlife and human exposures are to an unknown mixture of PFAS.

Proposed conclusions

• Owing to the extreme persistence of these substances, impacts on the environment are expected to increase if entry to the environment continues.
• Despite uncertainties, owing to the widespread use of PFAS along with their presence throughout the environment, humans are continuously exposed to multiple PFAS, which has the potential to cause adverse effects of concern.    
• On the basis of what is known about well-studied PFAS and the potential for other PFAS to behave similarly, and on the expectation that combined exposures to multiple PFAS increase the likelihood of detrimental impacts:
  • the Government is proposing that substances in the class of PFAS are entering or may enter the environment at levels that are harmful or may be harmful to the environment, and
  • the Government is also proposing that substances in the class of PFAS are entering or may enter the environment at levels that are harmful or may be harmful to human health.

Existing risk management

• Currently, a limited number of subgroups of PFAS are subject to risk management controls in Canada.
  • The manufacture, use, sale, offer for sale and import of PFOS, PFOA, long-chain perfluorocarboxylic acids, their salts and precursors, and products containing these substances are prohibited under the Prohibition of Certain Toxic Substances Regulations, 2012, with a limited number of exemptions. In May 2022, the proposedProhibition of Certain Toxic Substances Regulations, 2022 were published to repeal and replace the Prohibition of Certain Toxic Substances Regulations, 2012. When final, the regulations would further restrict these groups of substances by removing or providing time-limits for most remaining exemptions.
  • Some PFAS notified under the New Substances Notification Regulations (Chemicals and Polymers) have also been subject to prohibitions, ministerial conditions, and significant new activity provisions under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA).
• Other domestic activities that target PFAS include:
  • Canadian Drinking Water Quality Guidelines for PFOS and PFOA and Drinking water screening values for 9 select PFAS. These drinking water quality guidelines and screening values for PFAS are used by provinces and territories to manage drinking water in their regions and are used to assess potable groundwater or surface water at federal contaminated sites. In close collaboration with the Federal-Provincial-Territorial Committee on Drinking Water the Government of Canada is reviewing the PFAS drinking water guidelines and screening values using a group approach. 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 Canadian drinking water.
  • Federal Environmental Quality Guidelines are available for PFOS in surface water for the protection of aquatic life, fish tissue, wildlife diet for mammalian and avian consumers of aquatic biota, and in bird eggs.
  • Canadian Soil and Groundwater Quality Guidelines are also available for PFOS for the protection of human health and the environment.
  • Soil screening values based on human direct contact with soil for ten select PFAS.
  • Reducing risks from known federal contaminated sites through the Federal Contaminated Sites Action Plan
  • Reducing the anthropogenic release of chemicals of mutual concern into the Great Lakes under the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement.
  • Regulations for the import, export, and manufacture of certain ozone-depleting substances and concerning halocarbon alternatives are also set under the Ozone-Depleting Substances and Halocarbon Alternatives Regulations.
• The Government of Canada works with other governments internationally on initiatives that address PFAS, including through the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Canada has successfully nominated long-chain perfluorocarboxylic acids, their salts and related compounds for addition to the Stockholm Convention.

Preventive actions and risk reduction

• While there are various potential sources of PFAS in Canada, exposure sources of concern include firefighting foams containing PFAS, and other sources and products that contain PFAS.
• To reduce releases of PFAS to the Canadian environment and exposure of people in Canada to PFAS, the Government is considering:
  • Regulatory and/or non-regulatory controls to minimize environmental and human exposure to the class of PFAS from firefighting foams;
  • Gathering information necessary to identify and prioritize options for reducing environmental and human exposure from the class of PFAS from other sources and products; and
  • Aligning with actions in other jurisdictions, where appropriate.

Related resources

• Information on human biomonitoring of PFAS in Canada with results from the Canadian Health Measures Survey is available in the Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in Canadians document.
• Updates on Canada’s approach to PFAS can be found on the Government of Canada website.  
• Visit Healthy home for information on chemical safety in and around the home, including on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) for consumers.
• Environment and Climate Change Canada has also published a Supporting Document entitled Ecological State of the Science Report on Short-chain PFCAs, Short-chain PFSAs, and Long-chain PFSAs that provides a summary of environmental data that has become available on 3 subgroups of PFAS: Short-chain (C4 – C7) Perfluorocarboxylic Acids (SC-PFCAs); Short-chain (C4 – C7) Perfluorosulfonic Acids (SC-PFSAs); and Long-chain (C9 – C20) Perfluorosulfonic Acids (LC-PFSAs). Some of these substances are being used as substitutes for previously assessed PFAS that are now subject to restrictions.