MPs on the House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee will hear evidence from experts today from 2.30pm onwards about the potential risks of PFAS chemicals contaminating water and soil.
The live evidence session is part of the EAC’s ongoing inquiry: Addressing the risks from Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS).
The Committee is examining whether enough is being done in the UK to fully understand the potential risks of PFAS, whether institutions are equipped to monitor their impact, and what lessons the UK can learn from how they are regulated in other countries.
In today’s session, MPs will explore the main sources of PFAS contamination in the UK’s water, soil and atmosphere – including the risks of PFAS in sewage sludge for agricultural applications– and how these are monitored by organisations such as the Environment Agency.
They will also consider what the water sector could do to remove PFAS from water, and whether levies like those proposed in France – costing €100 per 100g of PFAS discharged into water – could reduce contamination and fund remediation here.
During the session, MPs will also hear from experts in PFAS regulation in other countries, such as Australia and the United States. Committee members are likely to ask how these countries assess the toxicity of PFAS, its impact on health, and how governments should prevent harm from PFAS without disrupting businesses.
Witnesses will be appearing before the Committee in the following order:
From 14.30:
- Professor Martyn Kirk, Professor of Applied Epidemiology and National Health and Medical Research Council Fellow, Australian National University
- Professor Elsie Sunderland, Fred Kavli Professor of Environmental Chemistry, Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Harvard University
- Professor Alan Boobis OBE, Emeritus Professor of Toxicology, Imperial College London
From 15.30:
- David Henderson, CEO, WaterUK
- Dr David Megson, Reader in Chemistry and Environmental Forensics, Manchester Metropolitan University
- Vicky Robinson, Head of Sustainability, The Agricultural Industries Confederation (AIC)
- Click here to watch the evidence session live on ParliamentLive TV or watch the recording afterwards.
Click here to watch the evidence session live on ParliamentLive TV or watch the recording afterwards.
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