The incinerator does not completely remove PFAS chemicals.

US experts warn that incinerators do not completely destroy PFAS, increasing the risk of releasing 'permanent chemicals' into the air and surrounding environment.

The waste management industry has recently been promoting incineration as a solution for handling PFAS, a type of chemical that is very difficult to decompose in the environment. A new report by the Minnesota Resource Recovery Association (MRRA) claims that incinerators in Minnesota can reduce PFAS emissions by up to 99.6%. Many other incinerator operators have made similar claims.

However, this conclusion is facing opposition from experts. The report was published amidst campaigns in cities like Miami, Philadelphia, and Baltimore calling for the closure of incinerators, and while the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is also facing lawsuits for issuing new emissions standards that are not strict enough and do not address PFAS.

According to an analysis by the Zero Burn Alliance and assessments by independent experts on waste incineration technology, the MRRA report is based on many unfounded assumptions, incomplete data, and inappropriate testing methods.

Current incinerators have not been able to prove their ability to completely destroy PFAS chemicals. Photo: Amager Resource Center.

Environmental organizations argue that instead of eliminating PFAS, incinerators may be releasing these chemicals, along with other hazardous pollutants, into the surrounding environment.

"Reports like these lead the public to believe that burning trash is safe," said Nazir Khan, executive director of the Minnesota Environmental Justice Table. "Waste ultimately becomes a burden that poor and vulnerable communities bear within themselves."

For its part, MRRA acknowledges some points in Zero Burn's analysis as valid but maintains that there is no basis to conclude that PFAS emissions from incinerators in Minnesota pose a safety risk.

PFAS is a group of at least 16,000 chemical compounds commonly used to provide water-repellent, oil-repellent, and stain-resistant properties to a wide variety of consumer products. Numerous studies have linked PFAS to increased risk of cancer, birth defects, weakened immune systems, high cholesterol, kidney disease, and other serious health problems.

Due to their widespread use in the economy , PFAS accumulate in high concentrations at landfills. When waste is incinerated, these compounds can be released into the atmosphere. Their high heat resistance makes PFAS very difficult to completely break down on an industrial scale.

"I haven't seen any large-scale commercial incinerators that actually solve this problem," said Michael Youhana, a lawyer for the organization Earthjustice.

Recent studies have also shown that airborne PFAS exposure may be far more dangerous than previously assessed, while regulators are only just beginning to develop relevant health standards.

According to scientists , operating the incinerator at temperatures around 850 degrees Celsius, as reported by the MRRA, may accelerate the breakdown of PFAS but is not enough to completely destroy these compounds. For thorough treatment, PFAS need to be completely mineralized at much higher temperatures, and there must be scientific evidence to confirm this process.

Furthermore, the combustion process can break down PFAS into smaller but still toxic compounds. Meanwhile, the MRRA study only examined about 50 types of PFAS, while the world currently identifies at least 16,000 compounds in this group, and hundreds more are still in commercial use.

The Zero Burn Alliance also cited the EPA's 2024 assessment, in which the agency acknowledged that there was not enough data to determine the reliability of waste incineration technology in controlling PFAS emissions.

According to environmental advocacy groups, the MRRA report has significant gaps in its toxicity assessment due to a lack of health information on many PFAS compounds detected in emissions.

Furthermore, evaluating each compound individually does not fully reflect the actual risks, as people are often simultaneously exposed to multiple types of PFAS along with other pollutants generated from waste incineration.

Despite ongoing debate about the specific level of danger, environmental organizations argue that residents living near waste incineration facilities are still facing the risk of exposure to toxic chemicals. Meanwhile, the Minnesota state government and relevant local authorities have yet to commit to addressing the problem comprehensively or shutting down these facilities.

Doug Gurian-Sherman, lead author of the Zero Burn analysis report and former EPA official, argues that this is a prime example of environmental injustice.

"This is part of a long history of attempts to distract public opinion and policymakers. This case clearly illustrates the problem of environmental injustice," he said.

Source: https://nongnghiepmoitruong.vn/lo-dot-rac-khong-xu-ly-triet-de-hoa-chat-pfas-d814385.html