SB 67-PFAS USE FIREFIGHTING  3:33:19 PM CO-CHAIR BISHOP announced the consideration of SENATE BILL NO. 67 "An Act relating to firefighting substances; and providing for an effective date." 3:33:36 PM SENATOR JESSE KIEHL, District B, Alaska State Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, sponsor of SB 67, introduced the legislation speaking to the following sponsor statement: Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of chemicals harmful to human health. They are linked to serious health conditions including low birth weight, thyroid disease, and cancereven at extremely small concentrations. They also make excellent ingredients in firefighting foams, in part because they resist breaking down. When firefighting foams or other compounds containing PFAS seep into drinking water, the toxic "forever chemicals" linger for years. The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation declared PFAS hazardous substances several years ago. Senate Bill 67 protects Alaskans' health and prevents future pollution by banning PFAS foams unless federal law preempts. The bill also requires the state to take back small quantities of PFAS foam to ensure it's disposed of safely. Because there is not yet an effective alternative for the intensity of fire threat oil & gas operations face at refineries or the Trans Alaska Pipeline terminal, the bill exempts those producing, transporting, or refining oil and gas until the State Fire Marshal determines an effective non-PFAS substance could do the job. 3:34:01 PM SENATOR KAUFMAN and SENATOR DUNBAR joined the committee. SENATOR KIEHL stated that with a few small exceptions, SB 67 says no new spraying of PFAS-containing firefighting foams into Alaska's environment. The bill acknowledges that as long as the FAA maintains its requirement, the prohibition against spraying PFAS-containing foams will be federally preempted. Fortunately, there is a congressional mandate for the FAA to lift that requirement, and several products are in the process that meet US military specifications for fluorine-free foam. SENATOR KIEHL said the other issue is right now there are no fluorine-free foams that will handle the volume of hydrocarbons in the oil and gas industry. Research is ongoing and products are available now that come close to putting out large oil and gas fires. SB 67 says that once those products are available, certified effective, and have gone through the full public regulatory process, the state fire marshal will mark the transition for the oil and gas industry. SENATOR KIEHL also flagged the takeback provision. He explained that the bill requires the executive branch to take back up to 25 gallons of PFAS-containing foam from small entities to ensure that the foam is disposed of appropriately. His expectation is these small quantities will be put with the PFAS-containing foams that the State Airport System owns and disposed of together. 3:42:24 PM CATHY SCHLINGHEYDE, Staff, Senator Jesse Kiehl, Alaska State Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, presented the sectional analysis for SB 67 on behalf of the sponsor: Sec. 1 of the bill creates a new section: Sec. 46.03.340(a): Everyone outside the oil & gas industry must stop using PFAS containing foams, unless federal law preempts Alaska law. Sec. 46.03.340(b): The oil & gas industry may continue using PFAS-containing foams until an alternative is approved by regulation. Sec. 46.03.340(c): The state fire marshal can determine there is a safe and effective PFAS-free foam for fighting oil or gas fires if the alternate foam is listed by an organization in OSHA's Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory Program. The fire marshal must require the new foam by regulation, with a stated effective date. Sec. 46.03.350(d): DEC must take up to 25 gallons per year of PFAS-containing firefighting foam from Alaskans for disposal. Sec. 2 of the bill sets an effective date of January 1, 2024. 3:43:18 PM SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked if there was reason to believe that safe alternative firefighting substances were available. SENATOR KIEHL answered yes, with the exception of the large and intense fires that might occur at oil and gas storage facilities. Nearly all of Europe has been fluorine-free for years and those foams are plenty effective for the volumes of air traffic that go through Anchorage, Fairbanks, and anywhere else that jets land in Alaska. SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked if PFAS is still used at major airports in Alaska. SENATOR KIEHL answered yes; the Federal Aviation Administration still requires DOT to use those foams. However, the testing that used to occur on runways is done in contained areas so the PFAS- containing foam does not escape into the environment. If there were a fire, the PFAS-containing foam would be used at this point. 3:44:37 PM SENATOR GIESSEL mentioned an article that highlighted PFAS in ski wax and commented on firefighters' risk of exposure. SENATOR KIEHL confirmed that first responders often are exposed to significant quantities of PFAS. He said it's a concern that PFAS chemicals are present in a lot of products. SB 67 focuses on the single greatest threat; PFAS in drinking water. 3:46:14 PM SENATOR KAWASAKI asked if there was a large cost differential between the firefighting foams used in Europe and the PFAS- containing foams used in the US. SENATOR KIEHL said he didn't have a cost comparison, but it is good news that established manufacturers throughout the world produce fluorine-free foams that work. 3:47:08 PM SENATOR CLAMAN asked if he had a timeline for when the military will approve PFAS-free firefighting foams. SENATOR KIEHL said the process is expected to be 60-90 days, and it's begun for some products. He said that should trigger the FAA to lift its requirement to use fluorinated foams at airports. It already is well past the congressional deadline to do so. He said there is no guarantee, but he believes that the FAA will begin the process to lift its requirement in 3-4 months. SENATOR CLAMAN commented that it sounds as though this could all occur within the next 6-12 months. MS. SCHLINGHEYDE responded that the FAA indicated it would remove the requirement to use fluorinated foams within 3-4 months. CO-CHAIR BISHOP turned to invited testimony. 3:49:13 PM JUSTIN MACK, Secretary/Treasurer, Alaska Professional Fire Fighters Association (AKPFFA), Anchorage, Alaska, testified by invitation in support of SB 67. He provided his extensive professional background, and said being a fire fighter is unique and routine until it isn't. He described going into buildings with zero visibility and responding to victims who might not see another day. He said it's clear that this career can be dangerous. He said he learned how to keep himself safe early in his career, but what he failed to understand was that despite being careful, following standard guidelines, decontaminating himself and his equipment, and wearing the most up to date equipment he and other fire fighters were going to be exposed to some of the worst chemicals on earth. These chemicals permeate gear and seep into fire fighters' pores. The data shows that firefighters have significantly higher rates of cancer than the general population. The World Health Organization classifies the occupation as carcinogenic. MR. MACK stated that SB 67 is an attempt to limit fire fighters' and the public's exposure to known carcinogens. He emphasized that there are alternatives to the use of PFAS-containing foam and strongly urged support for SB 67. 3:52:41 PM DAVID PRUHS, Mayor, City of Fairbanks, Fairbanks, Alaska, testified by invitation in support of SB 67. He stated that the Interior has an extensive problem associated with the dispersal of PFAS. The City of Fairbanks spent $5.4 million to supply water to 74 homes after PFAS from a firefighting training center migrated into a private utility's water system. The city also has an issue with concentrate discharge from its wastewater system and is seeking help from DEC on behalf of Golden Heart Utilities for a biosolids incinerator testing project. He agreed with Senator Kiehl that alleviating the problem starts with removing PFAS from the system. 3:55:00 PM CO-CHAIR BISHOP held SB 67 in committee.