Contact Us
PFAS
What is PFAS?
Per- and poly- fluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS) are manufactured chemicals that are used to make products resistant to heat, stains, grease and water.
PFAS have been widely used for more than 50 years in many consumer and industrial products, including carpets, cookware, clothing, food packaging, pesticides, stain repellents, firefighting foams, mist suppressants and coatings.
PFAS are stable chemicals that are resistant to physical, chemical and biological degradation. Because of these properties, PFAS last for a long time and they can be found in humans, animals and throughout the environment in Australia and other parts of the world.
There are many types of PFAS. The PFAS most commonly encountered in the environment and in wildlife are perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorohexane sulfonate (PFHxS). These are also the most studied PFAS due to their frequent occurrence in the environment, persistence and potential for bioaccumulation.
PFAS molecules are made up of a carbon chain with attached fluorine atoms, and a hydrophilic (water soluble) group at one end. The hydrophilic headgroups make PFAS very soluble in water. Consequently, PFAS can move from soil to surface water or groundwater and then migrate to creeks, rivers and lakes. PFAS can also be taken up by organisms in contaminated areas and be transferred through the food chain.
Due to widespread historical PFAS use, there are now PFAS contaminated sites in many parts of Australia and around the world. In some cases, PFAS from these sites have migrated to surface water, groundwater and/or adjoining land. PFAS can also be released into the environment from landfill sites where PFAS-containing products are disposed of, and through sewer discharges.
‘Groundwater’ is the water found underground in the cracks and spaces within soil, sand and rock. It moves slowly through the subsurface and may flow into surface water bodies.
‘Surface water’ is water that collects on the surface of the ground. This includes water in creeks, rivers, dams, lakes. It also includes water that temporarily pools or flows along the ground or in a drain during or after rainfall events. In general, surface water flows towards lower lying areas.
History of PFAS Use at Parafield Airport
Firefighting services were provided by former commonwealth agencies at Parafield Airport until 1986. Since that time, fire fighting services have been provided externally by the Metropolitan Fire Service.
Firefighting foams used at Parafield and other airports since the early 1970’s, including 3M Lightwater™, contained PFAS. The use of this foam at Parafield Airport was discontinued more than 30 years ago in 1986 when there ceased to be an active fire fighting service based at Parafield Airport.
Parafield Airport Ltd (PAL) took over operations of Parafield Airport in 1998 in a leasehold arrangement with the Australian Government. While PAL has never been responsible for firefighting services, it is pro-actively managing and coordinating the response to PFAS-related investigations based on guidance from Federal and State regulators, including the South Australian Environment Protection Authority (SA EPA). Regulators provide this guidance via a PFAS Project Control Group (PCG), which has been established to provide a forum for detailed review of PFAS investigations at Parafield Airport. The PFAS PCG consists of: Parafield Airport Ltd; Commonwealth Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Cities and Regional Development; SA EPA; Airservices Australia; SA Health; SA Water; Salisbury Council.
PFAS at Parafield Airport
For everything you need to know about PFAS at Parafield Airport, please refer to this brochure.
PFAS at Parafield Airport – Last modified November 2018
PAL has a factsheet available, which provides information on PFAS and the investigation results to date. Further updates will be provided as investigation results become available.