By Will Berger
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), known as “forever chemicals,” have long been used in various products, including food packaging, water-repellent fabrics, and nonstick cookware. However, as recent discoveries link these chemicals to a variety of health complications, including reproductive effects, developmental delays, and increased risk of some cancers, concerns about their use and environmental presence have continued to grow.
The North Carolina Collaboratory’s voluntary Aqueous Film-Forming Foam (AFFF) Takeback Program is one of many projects that have sought to track and limit the release of these chemicals into the environment. AFFF is a firefighting foam deployed to quickly and effectively extinguish gasoline- and liquid-based fires. When used, however, AFFF releases PFAS, which can lead to the pollution of surface and groundwater. The Takeback Program, which began in mid-July, aims to help local fire departments by collecting, storing, and eventually destroying toxic PFAS-containing firefighting foam.
“There was a lot of AFFF bought because it was the best thing on the market for petroleum-type fires,” explained North Carolina State Fire Marshal Brian Taylor. “We discovered after that there were a lot of dangers from the foam.” The goal of the Collaboratory’s AFFF Takeback Program is to remove the financial burden of properly disposing of PFAS-containing foams from local fire departments. For many departments, AFFF is sitting on shelves, unused. If the foam containers leak or are accidentally emptied, the foam could contaminate local water systems.
“Hopefully, we can prevent any future contamination and misuse of it [AFFF],” Taylor explained, “because we don’t want to expose our firefighters, and we don’t want to expose the environment.”
Preston Clark, a former fire service member with over 23 years of experience, joined the Collaboratory as a field research manager in 2024 to facilitate the Takeback Program. “My background has to do with preventing and responding to emergencies and having the welfare of the public in mind,” Clark said. “That’s what the Takeback Program does.”
Through the Program, the Collaboratory is partnering with the Office of the State Fire Marshal (OSFM), the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), and academic researchers to not only remove the toxic AFFF from use but also collect samples and perform research with the potential to advance PFAS destruction technologies.
The Program traces its roots to a mandate from the North Carolina General Assembly to record AFFF use. As the concerns about AFFF were further recognized, OSFM was tasked to complete a statewide inventory of AFFF. According to Taylor, to carry this out OSFM hired three foam analysts to “work side-by-side with fire departments to collect the inventory.”
Steve Allred, eastern NC’s foam analyst, was first introduced to tracking the use of AFFF when responding to a gasoline tanker fire. When another department came to assist his company, he recalled, “They were more interested in where the foam was going, as opposed to the gasoline. They were way ahead of everybody.”
During the collection process, OSFM’s foam analysts will pick up AFFF containers from local fire departments and safely store them in a climate-controlled facility until effective PFAS destruction techniques are primed. While stored, Lee Ferguson’s team at Duke University will sample the foam to gather a chemical fingerprint, which could be used with advanced analytical chemistry for environmental forensic applications – offering the possibility of determining the source of an AFFF contamination and holding entities accountable.
Though many states have similar takeback programs, North Carolina uniquely emphasizes the tracking of AFFF. “One thing that sets North Carolina apart is the fact that we are going to track all the AFFF in this State,” said Clark. “We’ll identify the manufacturer of the foam, the batch number for that manufacturer’s foam, wherever that’s dispersed throughout the State.”
As part of the Takeback Program, the destruction of PFAS will be pursued, likely through a process known as supercritical water oxidation (SCWO). “That technology is emerging,” added Clark. “Our intent is to use that technology because it does seem to be the best [at removing PFAS] based on existing research.”
Researchers at NC State, led by Bryan Ormond and funded by the Collaboratory, are also working with the Takeback Program by educating fire departments about emerging foams and helping facilitate the transition from AFFF to fluorine-free alternatives.
The NC State researchers, with help from OSFM officials, recently hosted a fluorine-free foam training course at Gaston College at no cost to participants. The training informed firefighters about the differences between AFFF and alternative fluorine-free foams and demonstrated the most effective application techniques for the replacement foam.
“The biggest challenge, really, is communication. There are other products out there,” Allred said. “They may not work exactly like what you’ve used for the last 40 years, but there are products that can accomplish what you want to get done.”
As the Takeback Program continues to collect foam from departments across the State, Takeback Program leaders remain optimistic about the opportunities the Program will provide to local fire departments. “We will find things we just can’t see right now, and we’ll have to adapt and adjust to that,” Clark concluded, “but I also see us being effective in accomplishing what we’ve set out to do.”
Will Berger is a mathematics and physics major at Wofford College. Will was an intern with the NC Collaboratory for the summer of 2024.