PFAS-coated clothes that are thrown away will often end up either incinerated or in landfill. Unless incinerated at very high temperatures (>1000oC), fluorinated polymers could release more harmful PFAS during burning. PFAS of environmental concern have also been found in landfill leachate. PFAS is found in treated waste water from industrial and domestic sources and has been found in both rivers and groundwater. Conventional drinking water processes will not remove PFAS.Small quantities of PFAS will be removed during wash and wear of products containing PFAS. This includes fluorinated polymers used on stain-resistant coatings, and non-polymers that remain on clothes after production (Lassen et al. 2015).Non-polymer PFAS can build up in blood protein of animals, and is not always removed quickly. This means that predators eating PFAS-contaminated food will have higher levels in their bloodstream, and concentrations can increase up the food chain. Studies suggest that build up of PFAS is similar to those of other Persistent Organic Pollutants such as DDT.PFAS are estimated to be settling in arctic regions at rates of tens to hundreds of kilograms per year (25-850kg per year), depending on the specific PFAS chemical in question. Certain PFAS are released as gases to the environment and are blown a long way by wind and air currents in the atmosphere,. These gas PFAS will over time degrade to more persistent chemicals like PFOS and PFOA. This may be one reason why PFAS of environmental concern have been found in remote regions such as the Arctic as well as near PFAS production sitesPFAS including PFOS and PFOA have been found in air samples around Europe. The chemicals are found in small quantities, but appear in almost all samples tested. PFAS enters the atmosphere both from factories and the air inside our homes. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17554424 Non-polymer PFAS are used in the production of fluorinated polymers. The manufacture of stain-resistant finishes generally releases these PFASs into the environment, both by air and water emissions. They are very hard to remove during water treatment. Workers in textiles factories are some of the population most exposed to these potentially harmful chemicals.

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Supply chain transparency Blogs

4 June 2025

Updated Furniture Fire Safety Regulations: Too little too late

Progress to protect babies from exposure to harmful chemicals in certain UK furniture products, but stronger imminent changes needed to reduce the use of flame retardants.

Author
Joanna Cloy

9 April 2025

New Report: Plugging the Chemical Transparency Gap for a Safer Circular Economy – Furniture supply chains

Our new report highlights the urgent need for chemical transparency throughout furniture supply chains to ensure safe and sustainable product design.

Author
Jamie Clarkson

27 January 2025

Disposal of waste upholstered domestic seating: the chemical burden on UK councils

Waste upholstered domestic seating has been found to contain legacy chemical flame retardants banned under the Stockholm Convention. Following rulings from national environmental agencies, this waste furniture must be separated and incinerated. Though a step forward in protecting the environment and human health, this has placed extra resource demands on local councils.

Author
Jamie Clarkson

6 September 2022

Fidra’s Approach to Supporting Sustainability

Transparency needs to be common practice to achieve best practice.

Author
Catherine Amis

4 May 2022

A New Global Plastics Agreement

What does a global treaty mean for plastic pollution and what are the next steps in the UN negotiations?

Author
Heather McFarlane