PFAS Reporting Developments: Is reporting needed for your company/insured?
Authored by: Greg Gaines, JD
Last year, the Canadian government promulgated regulations under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act that require certain businesses to report PFAS compounds in their supply chain on January 29, 2025. The regulations identify 312 distinct PFAS compounds that must be reported by a wide-range of Canadian businesses if they manufactured, imported, or used a regulated PFAS compound. Penalties for noncompliance include fines for as much as $500,000, while Directors and Officers of a covered business are subject to personal liability if they do not comply with the new law.
The Canadian regulations mimic recent developments in the US as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently announced the addition of nine new PFAS compounds to the federal Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) list. The TRI list is reported annually to the EPA and requires covered domestic businesses to report PFAS amounts released into the environment or managed as waste. With the inclusion of nine new PFAS compounds, the number of distinct PFAS in the TRI has reached 205 compounds. Businesses covered under TRI include manufacturers or importers of PFAS, construction companies, retail, and wholesale traders, as well as waste management service providers. Like Canada, the EPA has similar compliance enforcement mechanisms that include civil penalties, monetary fines, and corrective measures.
Given the growth of regulatory developments related to PFAS, companies with domestic and international operations and firms in certain supply chains should consider investigating which compounds may need disclosure so they can be adequately reported. As PFAS regulation and litigation continues to develop domestically and abroad, Roux remains ready and able to provide claim, litigation, and regulatory compliance support to our clients. Roux offers a wide array of diverse services and can be retained in an advisory capacity to opine on regulatory compliance issues as well as to provide litigation management, coverage litigation audits, and data analytics support, or cradle-to-grave claim handling services.
Please contact Roux through the link below if you have questions or concerns regarding the PFAS disclosure requirements.
About the Author: Greg Gaines, JD is a licensed attorney with over 30 years of experience in the insurance industry as in-house counsel, claims manager, and outside technical consultant for commercial insurance coverage and insurance defense-liability matters. He is an expert on third-party claims administration, loss allocation, auditing procedures, bad faith claims, and emerging environmental and product mass tort litigations.
