Summary
In our latest episode of 'Law behind the headlines' podcasts, Legal Director, Peter Ward, and Principal Associate, Richard Burrows, discuss PFAS; what they are, where they are found, whether they can be avoided and how they will likely affect the UK claims market in the future.
Transcript
Peter Ward: Hello and welcome to the next in our Law Behind the Headlines podcast series.
Peter: I'm Peter Ward, a Legal Director in our Weightmans national disease team, and I'm joined today by Richard Burrows, Principal Associate, also in our national disease team.
Peter: So today we're going to discuss all matters relating to PFAs, including what they are, whether we should be concerned about them and what steps are being taken to protect us from them, if needed.
Peter: So without further ado, welcome Richard, and thanks for joining me today.
Peter: So there doesn't seem to be more than a couple of weeks go by without there being another article in the news about PFAs. But what exactly are PFAs?
Richard Burrows: Thanks, Pete. PFAs are man-made substances, and they're used in industry and consumer products and have been for a number of decades now.
Richard: PFAs actually stand for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, but it's much easier to refer to them simply as PFAs. I'm going to continue to do so throughout this podcast, at least.
Richard: And so PFAs were first discovered in 1938. And they were first used on a widespread basis in Teflon, and they're now commonly found in non-stick cookware, water-repellent clothing, stain-resistant fabrics and carpets, certain cosmetics and firefighting foam.
Richard: They're commonly known as 'forever chemicals' because they don't easily degrade. Therefore, wherever they're found, they tend to just simply accumulate because they don't break down
Richard: The production processes involved in the creation of PFAs and also the use of the same can cause PFAs to migrate into soil, water and so outside of the products themselves.
Peter: I'm going to stick with calling them PFAs as well because I don't think I could pronounce the full name, so well done for that. But what are the dangers associated with PFAs? Now I'm aware that in general, they aren't good for our health. But how serious are the consequences of a significant buildup of them?
Richard: There's various adverse consequences if PFAs are ingested in any sort of significant amount, and they have been known to be associated with a variety of different cancers, PFAs in cosmetics have been said to double women's risk of diabetes.
Richard: They've also been connected with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, and they're also thought to have been connected with certain fertility issues.
Richard: And it was only reported, I think, earlier this week that also PFAs are connected with high blood pressure in middle-aged women.
Richard: So there's a variety of different consequences arising from them being ingested.
Richard: The difficulty with PFAs is once they have been ingested is that they tend to attach themselves to the proteins in blood, which means that they can transfer to pretty much the entirety of your body because obviously blood is present across your whole body.
Peter: And this problem with PFAs, is it something that's just linked to those countries that use them? Or is it more widespread than that?
Richard: Yeah, so there have been traces of PFAs located in polar bears, at the different poles. So they have been found across the world now and it seems to be that their transmitted by way of water.
Richard: So in the production process, if they seep into rivers and the processes involved with water transporting them across the Earth is one of the reasons why PFAs have spread so widely.
Richard: One of the ways that people come into contact with PFAs has been drinking contaminated water, and this can also include eating fish, which have been caught from water, which has been contaminated with PFAs and also eating food, which has been packaged in material that contains PFAs.
Richard: So this, in addition to people coming into direct contact with PFAs from consumer products, which have been packaged or themselves directly contain PFAs, is how they've sort of transported across the world. So it's not just in countries where these products are used.
Peter: Now, you said that PFAs were first discovered in 1938, so it seems a bit strange that it's only now we're seeing so much attention given to them in the news and obviously seemingly quite concerning side effects arising from them. Is there any particular reason for this?
Richard: I think PFAs fit the category of emerging risk perfectly and we've been aware of them since about the 1960s and how they affect the human body. But it's not until recently that regulators have developed technology to test for PFAs at very, very low concentrations. And when we refer to low concentrations, we mean parts per trillion.
Richard: So it's only now that it's being found in the 21st century that some products contain very, very small traces of PFAs.
Richard: So it's also important to be aware of that simply because a product contains PFAs, it isn't necessarily a significant risk.
Richard: The level of found can be extremely small and can be innocuous. It's more when PFAs build up that they become more dangerous and have these adverse consequences attached to them.
Peter: So how has the world responded to this increased research or rather awareness of PFAs being in a wider range of products and was perhaps first appreciated?
Richard: As with the majority of the major risks, the US appears to be a few steps ahead of where we are in the UK.
Richard: So the United States Environmental Protection Agency has produced a PFA strategic roadmap. They've set up a commitment to action by 2024, which is focused on research, restriction and remediation.
Richard: So their focus is on research into understanding PFAs. They want to restrict the movement of PFAS from entering air, land and water at hazardous levels, and they want to remediate by broadening and accelerating the cleanup of PFAs contamination to protect human health and ecological systems.
Richard: As well as action being taken by the US State authorities, large corporate organisations such as McDonald's and Burger King have also made a commitment to remove PFAs from their packaging by 2025.
Richard: The EU has set out a restrictions roadmap, which was published in late April, and it outlines the European Chemical Agency's intention to reduce the use of PFAs.
Richard: As of yet, the UK's response is unclear, but it would be hoped we will follow the example being set across the pond in the US and also on the continent in the EU.
Peter: And so until we have some UK regulations to govern the use of PFAs and set out our own response to the dangers presented, is there anyone particularly at risk from them in the UK and could we just avoid them altogether?
Richard: It's likely nigh on impossible to avoid PFAs completely, but as I mentioned in relation to the recent developments in technology, simply because you were encountering PFAs doesn't mean that you were doing so at hazardous levels.
Richard: Some research has shown that frequent blood donations can help to effectively flush out PFAs from the human body.
Richard: It's estimated that for a human body to reduce the level of PFAs within it by half can take between four and 15 years otherwise.
Richard: Perhaps one of the most at-risk groups is children from upholstered furniture and other items that children would come across on an almost daily basis.
Richard: One of the most recent examples of PFAs in products was in car seats in the US, where over half of car seats in the US market were said to contain either toxic flame retardants or PFAs. All car seats for sale under $100 had either PFAs or toxic flame retardants within them.
Richard: So, unfortunately, as appears to commonly be the case, there appears to be socioeconomic factors in play which put those with lower incomes at increased risk from those substances.
Peter: So final question, how do you anticipate that PFAs will affect the claims market going forward? And do you think we're likely to see a surge of PFA-related claims in the UK in the near future?
Richard: At this stage, even in the US, it appears that there is only increased awareness of PFAs rather than any sign of a wave of claims arising from the same.
Richard: I think that what we'll see in the coming months and possibly years is an increasing number of products connected with PFAs and an increasing number of organisations seeking to reduce the use of the same.
Richard: This, quite clearly will not negate the exposure that people have had in the years gone by but it will at least be a step towards protecting future generations.
Richard: That's for claims in the UK whereas in the US, we may see potentially class actions brought against firms who have produced products contaminated with PFAs.
Richard: The legal system in the UK is completely different and we would see individuals bringing individuals claims but this would likely need strong and persuasive medical evidence to support any link between the very small traces of PFAs that are being reported now and any ominous consequences arising from the same.
Peter: All right, well thanks for that, Richard. That was really interesting to understand exactly what PFAs are and the risks associated with the same. And I think it's certainly one to watch for the future and something that will definitely keep our eye on at Weightmans.
Peter: And finally, it just remains to me to thank everyone for listening today and do keep an eye out for the next in our series of podcasts on Law Behind the Headlines.