This year’s reporting under EPA’s Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) will carry additional intensity for any facilities that may have Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) onsite. Reporting in 2025 for calendar year 2024 activities is the first year with no de minimis exemption for PFAS. These compounds are often found at low concentrations, therefore the removal of the de minimis exemption will bring significantly more materials into consideration for TRI.
TRI was created by the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) for data collection of annual quantities of TRI-listed chemicals that were released into the environment or otherwise managed as waste. TRI data supports informed decision making by improving accountability and transparency for communities across the country. In addition to the removal of the de minimis exemption, more PFAS are typically added to the list of TRI toxic chemicals each year. On January 3, 2025, EPA announced the automatic addition of nine PFAS to the TRI list of chemicals, bringing the total PFAS subject to TRI reporting to 205.
Removal of de minimis exemption for PFAS
The de minimis exemption allows for toxic chemicals in a mixture to be exempt from reporting if below a concentration of 1%, or 0.1% for carcinogens. On November 30, 2023, EPA finalized a rule making PFAS as TRI Chemicals of Special Concern (COSC), thereby making them ineligible for the use of the de minimis exemption. Within the same rule, EPA removed the de minimis exemption for supplier notifications for COSC. Due to this change, suppliers are now required to disclose all TRI-covered PFAS chemical identities if present – regardless of concentration – and facilities are required to include all PFAS in TRI reporting, even if only low concentrations are present. Certain persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic chemicals like lead, mercury, and dioxins are also listed as TRI COSC and are subject to the supplier notification requirement of full disclosure. The changes outlined by this rule took effect for the 2024 reporting year, with reports due July 1, 2025.
The removal of the de minimis exemption for PFAS does not change the article exemption for reporting or supplier notifications; this is still in place. Additionally, the 100 lb/yr activity rate reporting applicability threshold remains intact for PFAS.
With the removal of the de minimis exemption for PFAS, facilities that may have PFAS onsite must now examine PFAS presence in greater detail. This begins with determining which materials may contain PFAS and then working with suppliers to confirm that all necessary PFAS disclosures are provided. If TRI reporting is triggered for PFAS, then additional steps must be taken to calculate environmental discharge rates and other releases. Facilities must consider how to efficiently gather the PFAS data they need to complete TRI reporting applicability determinations, and report if necessary. Care should be taken to meet legal requirements but avoid expending unnecessary effort for information gathering.
Addition of nine PFAS to the TRI list of chemicals
Pursuant to a provision of the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), additional PFAS will be automatically added to the TRI list each year in response to specified EPA activities. Nine (9) individual PFAS were added for the 2025 calendar year activities (reports due in 2026) due to EPA having finalized toxicity values for each in 2024. This brings the total number of TRI-applicable PFAS to 205. The newly added PFAS are used in a variety of industries and are the following compounds:
- Ammonium perfluorodecanoate (PFDA NH4) (3108-42-7)
- Sodium perfluorodecanoate (PFDA-Na) (3830-45-3)
- Perfluoro-3-methoxypropanoic acid (377-73-1)
- 6:2 Fluorotelomer sulfonate acid (27619-97-2)
- 6:2 Fluorotelomer sulfonate anion (425670-75-3)
- 6:2 Fluorotelomer sulfonate potassium salt (59587-38-1)
- 6:2 Fluorotelomer sulfonate ammonium salt (59587-39-2)
- 6:2 Fluorotelomer sulfonate sodium salt (27619-94-9)
- Acetic acid, [(ϒ-ω-perfluoro-C8-10-alkyl)thio] derivs., Bu esters (3030471-22-5)
The effective date of this rule was originally February 5, 2025 but was extended to March 21, 2025 by the new administration. This delay applies to the addition of the nine new PFAS, but the removal of the de minimis exemption for PFAS is unchanged.
Future implications for facility-specific PFAS management
Evolving PFAS regulations require a nimble approach to compliance. Trinity is assisting facilities in PFAS identification and compliance assurance in the ever-changing US Federal, State, and also global regulatory scopes. If you would like to discuss potential PFAS issues, liability at your facilities, or how to get ahead of future enforcement actions, please contact your local Trinity office or John Goetze.
Trinity’s large team of environmental consultants routinely assists clients in completing strategic analyses and assessments associated with facility expansions, compliance interpretations, and regulatory risk management. This customized content comes in various forms including memos outlining permitting impact options, regulatory white papers, business processes mapping, and site-specific monitoring plans. Trinity’s internal Knowledge Management System, a state-of-the-art information technology platform, is an invaluable tool for executing strategic compliance projects. The system enables our consultants to access institutional knowledge through the real time exchange of information and thereby leverage the depth and breadth of our environmental expertise across hundreds of consultants to help our clients make sound business decisions.
