Canada will add PFAS, which are linked to cancer and other health problems, to toxic substances list

Inayat Singh · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 05, 2025 3:20 PM EST | Last Updated: March 5

The national authorities is moving to adhd PFAS, a people of thousands of chemicals utilized successful a wide scope of products from nutrient containers to clothing, to the authoritative database of toxic substances, successful airy of increasing technological and nationalist interest astir the substances successful Canada and astir the world.

PFAS, oregon per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are man-made chemicals utilized for their h2o and vigor resistant properties. They are wide utilized successful galore mundane products — specified arsenic packaging, cosmetics and textiles — on with concern uses similar water-repellent coatings and firefighting foam. 

"What we're doing is unprecedented, that we would usage the Canadian Environmental Protection Act to not look astatine 1 substance... but to look astatine the full household [of chemicals]. It's ne'er been done before," said Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault successful Montreal.

Often referred to arsenic "forever chemicals," PFAS person besides progressively been linked to quality wellness problems, specified arsenic expanding crab hazard and causing reproductive issues. The aforesaid qualities that marque them utile besides marque them precise persistent successful the environment, accumulating successful h2o sources, animals and yet quality bodies.

What does the 'toxic' designation pb to?

The authorities released its last State of PFAS report, which details wherever and however the chemicals are utilized successful Canada and their interaction connected radical and health.

Today's announcement volition not instantly prohibition immoderate caller PFAS, but it volition commencement a process to restrict them successful the future. The authorities has started a 60-day consultation play required earlier adding PFAS to the toxic substances list.

"Once that listing is finalized, past the authorities tin determination up with regulations. And those would impact removing [PFAS] from products, removing it for things similar firefighting foam, removing it from concern uses," said Elaine MacDonald, wellness communities manager astatine the biology instrumentality foundation Ecojustice. 

"And the program they laid retired contiguous truly doesn't person a batch of timelines astir what that mightiness look like. So we volition beryllium pushing for them to bash it arsenic rapidly arsenic possible."

First up, the authorities says it volition look astatine restricting PFAS successful firefighting foams. Then, it volition look astatine PFAS successful cosmetics, non-prescription drugs, nutrient packaging, textiles and definite gathering materials, cleaning products and waxes and polishes.

Starting with firefighting foams is peculiarly important, according to Miriam Diamond, a starring PFAS researcher and prof astatine the University of Toronto.

"Millions of radical astir the globe are drinking PFAS-contaminated h2o due to the fact that of the usage of PFAS-containing aqueous firefighting foam. It's astir acute astir airports, astir subject bases, astir locations wherever determination person been monolithic fires," Diamond said.

"Other places successful the satellite are moving distant from it and are moving distant from it quickly."

Diamond's laboratory has conducted probe connected PFAS being recovered successful takeout containers, cosmetics and different products. She said fixed what's already known astir the dispersed and impacts of PFAS, the authorities needs to determination overmuch faster than the existent phased plan.

"In the briefing today, authorities officials mentioned cosmetics, nutrient packaging and textiles. Actually, they hap to beryllium the 3 areas successful which we've done enactment — connected PFAS successful Canadian cosmetics, nutrient packaging and successful textiles," she said. 

"The bully quality astir our enactment was that fractional of those products didn't incorporate PFAS. So determination are alternatives oregon it's not needed. Hence the authorities could beryllium enacting restrictions close distant connected those products.There is nary request for a Phase 2 in my eyes."

What our different countries doing connected PFAS?

Addressing the wide usage of these chemicals has go a planetary interest due to the fact that of conscionable however overmuch of the substances humans person already been exposed to.

Researchers person recovered types of PFAS successful fish caught from h2o bodies crossed North America; successful the air, rainfall and h2o of the Great Lakes; successful makeup, paper-based nutrient packaging, feminine hygiene products; and clothing, specified arsenic school uniforms, rainfall jackets and children's wintertime gloves.

As a result, astir each Canadians and Americans person PFAS successful their bodies.

"It's truthful ubiquitous successful our economy. It is successful truthful galore antithetic products," MacDonald said. 

"It's going to instrumentality a agelong clip to fig retired however to region it from everything."

The caller proposals let for exemptions for definite PFAS based connected whether determination are feasible and cost-effective alternatives. That's akin to the European Union, which proposed a ban connected the usage of PFAS successful user products, with imaginable exemptions for immoderate concern uses. 

The Chemistry Industry Association of Canada released a statement saying PFAS are "critical to a modern mode of life," and that successful "many cases there are nary known alternatives to these substances."

WATCH | Environment curate announces connection to adhd PFAS to toxic substances list:

In the U.S., efforts to modulate the chemicals person suffered a setback. President Donald Trump's caller medication has withdrawn projected PFAS discharge limits for industries. But states are taking their ain actions.

Over half of U.S. states person taken ineligible enactment against PFAS manufacturers and users. Many states person passed authorities restricting PFAS successful assorted products and introducing limits for the substances successful drinking water.

"It is existent that the U.S. medication is walking backmost connected immoderate of those commitments. But the bully quality is that determination are a fig of U.S. states that are maintaining their laws and regulations connected these substances," Guilbeault said, adding that helium volition enactment with those states and different countries connected a communal attack to tackling PFAS.