PFAS Ban On Firefighter Foam Pushed By Lower Bucks Co. Lawmakers

WARMINSTER TOWNSHIP, PA — State Rep. Brian Munroe has called on his colleagues to pass a bill that would ban the use of PFAS-containing firefighting foam in the Commonwealth.

Munroe recently testified before the Pennsylvania Senate’s Veterans Affairs and Emergency Preparedness Committee in favor of H.B. 1261, which would prohibit the manufacture, sale, distribution, and use of foam that contain a group of chemicals known as PFAS except in specific circumstances.

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Munroe said that his district — which encompasses Warminster, Warrington, Ivyland, and parts of New Britain — was decimated by the effects of these chemicals.

“When firefighters battle some of the most difficult and severe fires, they have often deployed Class B firefighting foam, an effective method for extinguishing certain types of fires, but one that is laden with the toxic chemicals that contaminate firefighting gear and firefighters’ skin, as well as the ground and water where the foam collects,” Munroe said

The legislation would allow fire companies to utilize their state grant funding to mitigate the small cost of disposal of PFAS-laden foam and direct the Office of the State Fire Commissioner to work with the Department of Environmental Protection to ensure the safe handling and disposal of the prohibited foam.

Violations of the prohibition would result in fines to benefit firefighter training.

"I am calling on my colleagues in the state Senate to help protect our communities and pass House Bill 1261 and its companion legislation to finally prohibit the manufacture, sale, distribution, and use of foam containing PFAS,” he said.

As a two-time cancer survivor and former firefighter himself, Munroe said he is personally familiar with the dangers of PFAS and has made banning "forever chemicals" one of his primary legislative priorities.

"The legislation addresses a type of environmental devastation that has not only decimated the water supply in my district but has fundamentally altered our lives… including my own,” Munroe said, speaking in support of H.B. 1261’s companion bill, S.B. 980. “We need to ensure that the contamination that happened here in Warminster, Warrington and Ivyland Borough, doesn’t happen to other communities throughout the Commonwealth.

House Bill 1261 advanced out off the Senate Veterans Affairs and Emergency Preparedness Committee and awaits full consideration from the Senate.