AGC of America released a new resource to help contractors identify and manage risks associated with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) on construction projects. The document, General Contractors: Questions and Considerations Related to PFAS, outlines key issues to raise before the project starts and once you are on the jobsite.
This new resource comes as contractors face unprecedented liability following the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) designation of two PFAS compounds—perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS)—as hazardous substances under the federal Superfund law. That rule exposes contractors to cleanup costs where they may have encountered PFOA or PFOS on past projects. It also drives up costs on current and future projects to manage potential contamination without a path to compliance.
AGC is challenging the rule in court while educating policymakers on the need to protect passive receivers like contractors. EPA’s rule ignores the reality that construction firms are not manufacturers of PFAS, but they are the ones now being forced to shoulder risks they cannot control. AGC is also calling on project owners to fairly share responsibility for PFAS-related risks in contracts.
The Questions and Considerations document is a practical tool to help contractors. It gives contractors a starting point for identifying those risks and pressing for a fair allocation of responsibility.
- Understand PFAS risks (regulatory, contractual, and site-specific).
- Ask the right questions of owners and project partners.
- Manage cost and liability when dealing with impacted soils and groundwater effluent.
For more information, please contact Melinda Tomaino at melinda.tomaino@agc.org.