OECD/UNEP Global PFC Group
Webinar on Best Environmental
Practices for Class B Firefighting
Foams
Tom Cortina – Fire Fighting Foam Coalition (FFFC)
Mitch Hubert – Perimeter Solutions

• Fire Fighting Foam Coalition (FFFC)
• Background on Fire Fighting Foams
• Foam Legacy Issues
• Best Environmental Practices (BEPs)
• Alternatives to Long-chain PFAS Foams
• PFHxS
• Summary
Overview

• Founded 2001
• FFFC is a non-profit corporation and trade association
• Focus on issues related to the efficacy and environmental impact of
fire fighting foams
• FFFC represents the firefighting foam industry on regulatory and
legislative issues and provides a focal point for technical reviews,
development of industry positions, and interactions with relevant
organizations such as environment agencies, militaries, approval
agencies, and standards bodies
Fire Fighting Foam Coalition

Worldwide members – consist mostly of fire foam
manufacturers and fluorosurfactant suppliers
FFFC Members
Suppliers
• Chemours
• Dynax
• National Foam
• Oil Technics
• Orchidee
• Perimeter Solutions
• Profoam
• Sthamer
• Buckeye
• Fire Safety Devices
• Fire Service Plus
• Fomtec
• Johnson Controls
• KV Fire
Foam Manufacturers

• Foam is a blanketing and cooling agent that is
produced by mixing air into a foam solution that
contains water and foam concentrate
• Fire fighting foam is a stable mass of small
bubbles of lower density than most flammable
liquids and water that exhibit tenacity for covering
horizontal surfaces
Background

Background

Background

Foam Types
• Class A Foams – Combustible materials (wood, paper,
fabric, refuse)
• Class B Foams – Flammable liquids
How They Work
1. Exclude air from the flammable vapors
2. Eliminate vapor release from fuel surface
3. Separate the flames from the fuel surface
4. Cool the fuel surface and surrounding surfaces
Background

Class “B” Foam Types
• Protein Foam
• Fluoroprotein Foam (FP, AR-FP)
• Film Forming Fluoroprotein Foam (FFFP, AR-FFFP)
• Aqueous Film Forming Foam (AFFF, AR-AFFF)
• Fluorine-free Foam (FFF, AR-FFF)
AR = Alcohol Resistant
Background
• Fluoroprotein Foam (FP, AR-FP)
• Film Forming Fluoroprotein Foam (FFFP, AR-FFFP)
• Aqueous Film Forming Foam (AFFF, AR-AFFF)

• Aircraft Rescue & Fire
Fighting (ARFF)
• Municipal Fire Brigades
• Industrial Fixed Systems
• Petrochemical
– Emergency Response
– Preparation/Protection Against
Catastrophic Fires
• Military / Government
• Marine & Off Shore Fire
Protection
Background – Uses

Background

Background
1978 - LAX
2016 - ORD

• Hydrocarbon Surfactants
• Organic Solvents
• Water
• Minor Ingredients Include:
– Corrosion Inhibitors
– Inorganic Salts
– Biocide
• Polymer (Polysaccharide) in
Alcohol Resistant (AR) Foams
• Fluorinated Surfactants (AFFF)
• Novel Ingredients – Silicon-based
Materials, Acrylic Polymers (FFF)
Background – Composition
• Hydrocarbon Surfactants
• Organic Solvents
• Water
• Minor Ingredients Include:
– Corrosion Inhibitors
– Inorganic Salts
– Biocide
• Polymer (Polysaccharide) in
Alcohol Resistant (AR) Foams
• Fluorinated Surfactants (AFFF)
• Novel Ingredients – Silicon-based
Materials, Acrylic Polymers (FFF)

• All class B foams, whether or
not they contain PFAS
fluorochemicals, have
ingredients that can impact the
environment
• All class B foams need to be
handled using best
environmental practices
Background – Composition

• Any facility where uncontrolled discharges of foam have taken place could
have groundwater and soil contamination
• Growing issue worldwide
Foam Legacy Issues
Source: “What is Groundwater?" by The Groundwater Foundation, 2016
• Groundwater and soil
studies from fire training
areas show multiple
uncontrolled releases
over many years can
result in long-term
contamination
• Major issue at US military
bases

• Key Points
– Contamination from foam use may largely be the result of past
practices for testing and training
– Over the past decade there has been an increased focus on
minimizing discharges of firefighting foams to the environment
– Current best practice calls for the use of alternative fluids and
methods for testing and training
Foam Legacy Issues

• FFFC Best Practice Guidance for
Use of Class B Firefighting Foams
• Interstate Technology & Regulatory
Council (ITRC) AFFF Fact Sheet
Best Environmental Practices (BEPs)

• Use fluorinated Class B foams only in
situations that present a significant
flammable liquid hazard
• Before deciding to use fluorinated
Class B foam for a specific hazard,
investigate whether FFF can achieve
the required performance
• Consider adopting a two-foam
approach with FFF used to respond to
small incidents and AFFF kept as
emergency backup for major incidents
BEPs – Foam Selection
AFFF
FFF

Training
• Do not use class B foams for
training
• Use only specifically designed,
training foams
BEPs – Eliminating Foam Discharge
• Training foams are usually
biodegradable and with
advanced notice can be sent for
treatment to the local WWTP
• Training facility design should
include a containment system
for spent foam solution

Testing
• Do not use class B foams for
conformance testing of
equipment, vehicles, or fixed
systems
• Use only environmentally
benign alternatives liquids or
methods
• If the AHJ requires training or
testing using class B foam,
ensure that spent foam is
contained and properly
disposed
• Never use legacy foams for
testing and training purposes
BEPs – Eliminating Foam Discharge

• Provide for containment, treatment,
and proper disposal of foam solution
• Avoid direct release to the environment
to the greatest extent possible
• Develop a firewater runoff collection
plan to make available the required
equipment that will capture the runoff
water and place this water in a
contained area or tank allowing later
treatment
• Firewater runoff must be collected and
treated regardless of what type of foam
was used on the fire
BEPs – Containing Foam Discharge

• Runoff firewater is a complex fluid to
handle and is likely to contain
hazardous combustion products
• Incineration in appropriate equipment
is a recognized disposal method
• Other effective techniques include a
combination of coagulation,
flocculation, electro-flocculation,
reverse osmosis, and adsorption on
granular activated carbon (GAC)
• Short-chain (C6) fluorosurfactants
used in modern foams can be
successfully treated using these
methods
BEPs – Firewater Disposal

• Class B foam concentrates do
not carry an expiration date and
generally have a 10 to 25-year
shelf life, so the need to dispose
of spent or expired concentrate
should be infrequent
• When disposal of Class B foam
concentrate is required, it is
recommended that it be sent for
thermal destruction (high
temperature incineration) to a
facility capable of handling
halogenated waste or the
equivalent
BEPs – Foam Concentrate Disposal

• Follow applicable industry standards on
the design, installation, and maintenance
of foam systems
• Minimize false discharges from fixed foam
systems by using approved detection,
actuation, and control systems
• Use appropriate personal protective
equipment (PPE)
• Keep records of when and where foam is
used to respond to incidents
• In all situations, consider firefighter and
public safety first
BEPs – Operational Procedures

• Develop mitigation plans for
uncontrolled releases of foam
concentrate or foam solution to
minimize environmental Impacts
• Develop and communicate
documented processes for a
facility or installation with the
stakeholders and regulatory
agencies before a release
occurs
• Prioritize proper education,
training, preplanning, and
actions at an incident to ensure
the most efficient use of the
foam and equipment
BEPs – Planning and Mitigation

• Foams containing only short-chain (C6) fluorochemicals
– Most effective foams currently available
– Equal effectiveness to legacy foams with long-chain PFAS
content
• Fluorine-free foams
– Do not contain persistent fluorochemicals
– Not currently able to provide the same level of fire suppression
capability, efficiency, flexibility, and scope of usage as
fluorinated foams
Alternatives to Long-chain PFAS Foams

• Foam manufacturers that are members of the FFFC sell
both fluorinated and fluorine-free class B foams and
support their use in appropriate applications
• Foam manufacturers that are members of the FFFC do
not support the notion being pushed in some circles that
current-day FFF foams can provide an equivalent level
of performance to AFFF agents for all class B
applications and hazards, and thus the continued use of
AFFF agents is no longer necessary
Alternatives to Long-chain PFAS Foams

• PFHxS in the 6-carbon homologue of PFOS
• It was contained in PFOS-based foams manufactured
prior to 2002
• Fluorotelomer-based foams do not contain or breakdown
to PFHxS
• This includes both legacy and modern short-chain (C6)
fluorotelomer-based foams
• Modern foams being sold today do not contain or
breakdown to PFHxS or PFHxS-related substances
PFHxS

• Class B firefighting foams provide a critical resource to
society by providing protection against flammable liquid
fires
• All class B firefighting foams have environmental impacts
• These impacts are managed through proper containment,
treatment, and disposal of foam discharges, and by
minimizing use
Summary

Tom Cortina
Fire Fighting Foam Coalition
+1 571 384 7915
cortinaec@comcast.net
www.fffc.org
Mitch Hubert
Perimeter Solutions
+1 920 593 9454
mitch.hubert@solbergfoam.com
Thank You