WASHINGTON, D.C. —The U.S. Chamber of Commerce today launched a new initiative to highlight the critical uses of fluorochemistries and to combat growing threats to their availability driven by concerns about per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).
The Essential Chemistry for America initiative is dedicated to safeguarding access to fluorochemistries by increasing awareness of their essential role across every major sector of the U.S. economy. The campaign will educate policymakers and business leaders about the role of essential chemistry in virtually every aspect of our lives, and advocate for sound, science and risk-based regulations and policies.
“Today’s innovative fluorochemistries are the backbone of our economy,” said Marty Durbin, senior vice president of policy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. “We support the need to effectively and appropriately clean up specific legacy PFAS in the environment, substances that are no longer in commerce. But not all PFAS are the same, and the regulatory environment should reflect those differences. As the leading voice of business with members in virtually every sector of the economy, we’re increasingly concerned that overly broad regulatory approaches threaten access to modern fluorochemistries, so we’re taking action to ensure their availability.”
The term PFAS includes thousands of chemistries with very different properties. Today’s fluorochemistries possess a unique combination of properties to repel water and retard heat that makes them durable, efficient, versatile, reliable, and ultimately irreplaceable across critical sectors. Among the sectors most reliant on fluorochemistries are automotive, semiconductors, data centers, defense equipment and systems, renewable energy technologies, and health care.
In working to tackle the challenges related to PFAS in the environment, policymakers have in recent years considered, and in some jurisdictions passed, sweeping bans that would treat all PFAS the same and restrict access to innovative fluorochemistries.
Learn more about Essential Chemistry for America here.
