Guest Columnist: 3M to Exit from PFAS Manufacturing. What Does it Mean for FLS?

3M to Exit PFAS Manufacturing by the End of 2025

3M Named in Over 3000 PFAS Related Lawsuits

Industry Position and Announcement on 3M Novec 1230 Decision

More State Bans on Products Containing "Forever Chemicals"

PFAS Found in Green Bay

Letters to the Editor (3M Shocks the Industry)

The Fire Protection Industry, and specifically those of us that focus on special hazard and clean extinguishing agent fire protection systems, was shocked by the sudden announcement by 3M on Tuesday, December 20, 2022, that they would be ceasing production of their Novec TM 1230 Fire Suppression Fluid at the end of 2025. Read the Full Letter Here

NAFED Introduces State Licensing Guide

Most Popular Stories from December 2022

Once again, the Special Hazard Fire Suppression Industry is faced with a challenge. Some call it an

existential threat. Others call it a speed bump. Whatever the outcome, 3M’s decision to end production of its fire suppression fluid, Novec 1230, will occupy discussions, trade association activities and business strategies for the balance of 2023 and beyond.

In 1994, Halon 1301, the world’s first reasonably safe and commercially successful “clean agent” was

banned from production because it was determined to be an ozone depleting substance. In the early

2000’s we learned that Halon’s successor, FM200, was a global warming chemical and the industry

would spend over a decade not knowing if FM200 (HFC227) would too be banned or phased down.

Either one would be a blow to the industry.

In 2021, because of the AIM Act, the production of FM200 was capped and regulations put in place for

an 85% phasedown.

Now, in 2023, the industry is faced with the possibility that Novec 1230, the fire suppression agent developed and marketed as the environmentally friendly (non-Ozone depleting and Non-Global Warming) replacement for FM200, could potentially fall into the category of “Forever Chemicals” or PFAS and possibly be banned or highly regulated.

There has been a lot of noise lately in the fire and life safety community surrounding Novec™ 1230 and 3M’s recent announcement. In case you missed it, four days before Christmas, without warning, 3M announced it would exit PFAS manufacturing by the end of 2025, which includes its clean agent fire protection fluid, Novec™ 1230. This announcement set off a series of announcements from fire equipment manufacturers and special hazards contractors. Depending on where you stand on this issue, 3M created a large void in the fire suppression space with their announcement to exit without offering any alternative paths for good, clean suppression agents. So, what does the industry do next?

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- 3M announced it will exit per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS) manufacturing and work to discontinue the use of PFAS across its product portfolio by the end of 2025. 3M's decision is based on careful consideration and a thorough evaluation of the evolving external landscape, including multiple factors such as accelerating regulatory trends focused on reducing or eliminating the presence of PFAS in the environment and changing stakeholder expectations.

3M Co. made the historic announcement that it is leaving the business of manufacturing “forever chemicals" -- a multibillion dollar industry the company helped found nearly six decades ago.

It will cease production of all per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) by the end of 2025 due to a confluence of reasons that includes shifting industry desires and “accelerating regulatory trends,” 3M’s chief executive officer Mike Roman told Bloomberg News.

But beyond “accelerating regulatory trends,” the company is facing a deluge of litigation that won’t end when production does. Beginning in 2020, at least 3 PFAS-related lawsuits a day were filed against the company on average, according to a Bloomberg Law analysis of litigation data. Bloomberg Law identified at least 3,287 lawsuits that mention 3M as a defendant between Jan. 1, 2020 and Dec. 19, 2022.

New state laws banning products with “forever chemicals” -- from carpets and fast-food wrappers to ski wax -- are taking effect as momentum grows nationally to get rid of substances that accumulate in human bodies and are linked to serious health problems.

As of this month, Maine has banned the sale of residential carpets with long-lasting chemicals known as PFAS and became the first state to require companies to report products that contain the chemicals. In Washington and Vermont, companies can no longer sell or use food packaging, such as wrappers and pizza boxes, that contain them. Vermont’s ban on ski waxes with the chemicals begins in July.

A large plume of toxic chemicals produced by a plant that manufactures firefighting foam has seeped through groundwater to Lake Michigan’s Green Bay, scientists said.

The chemicals belong to a family of compounds known as PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, which are used widely in consumer products ranging from nonstick cookware and water-repellent sports gear to stain-resistent carpets. They’re also a key ingredient in fire-extinguishing foams. They can accumulate and persist in the human body for long periods, and exposure may lead to cancer and other health problems.