Permits & Licensing

Storing waste PFOA-containing firefighting foams and wastes from their decontamination and replacement: RPS 376

by Environment Agency
7 September 2026
1 min read

Environment Agency regulatory position on when you can store PFOA (perfluorooctanoic acid) foam wastes for longer than allowed by non-waste framework directive exemptions.

This regulatory position statement (RPS) does not change your legal requirement to:

have an environmental permit where one is required
comply with the conditions of your environmental permit
comply with the requirements under the UK persistent organic pollutants (POPs) regulations

However, the Environment Agency will not normally take enforcement action if you do not comply with these legal requirements if you meet the requirements in this RPS.

This regulatory position does not apply to any other legal requirements.

Source: Environment Agency · Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.