Aviation has always been an industry with an increased potential for fire danger since powered aircraft have been used. Firefighting has an established history within this industry, since the first scheduled airline flights took place in the early 20th century. As with many large industries, governmental organizations take over to regulate.
Fire Department Service Announcement
Bulletin #66, Precursors ‘All fluorinated firefighting foams characterised to date contain polyfluorinated precursors to the regulated PFAS, so conventional analysis such as the use of EPA methods 533 and 537.1 cannot assess the concentrations of principle PFAS in most fluorinated…
How are you planning to get your fire department out of PFAS?
States are utilizing action on PFAS containing firefighting foams with take-back programs given the lack of federal direction. According to BCLP (Bryan Cave Leighton Paisler), a law firm keeping up with state regulations, ‘33 states have either enacted or proposed…
Fire Department Service Announcement
Bulletin #61, PFAS crisis management The Foam Exposure Committee recommends the following actions because there is no way presently to remove PFAS from the human body: Identify your fire department’s current firefighting foam product – does it contain PFAS? Stop…
Fire Department Service Announcement
Bulletin #57, Prop 65 Awareness As fire departments are working through obtaining a ‘clean’ foam, they should be aware of California Proposition 65 (Prop 65). This law came into effect in 1986 with the intention to allow consumers to make…
Fire Department Service Announcement
Bulletin #56: Multidistrict Litigations Because there are so many PFAS-related lawsuits occurring, the ‘Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigations determined that the AFFF cases filed involved common questions of law and fact such that centralization of the cases was appropriate.’1 Any…
Ensuring that fire testing of new-generation foams is relevant to real applications
The transition to fluorine-free foams is arguably the greatest issue currently facing industrial firefighters, particularly those with large-diameter storage tank hazards. It is generally recognised that this transition has to happen. It is not a case of ‘if’; it is…
Fire Department Service Announcement
International entities using PFAS-free firefighting foams, Bulletin #37 International entities Location Year Auckland Airport Auckland, New Zealand 2019 1 All 27 major Australian airports including Melbourne Metropolitan Fire Brigade (changed over in 2014) Australia 2018 2 Bristol Airport Bristol, England,…
Removing PFAS ‘forever chemicals’ will be a costly undertaking for fire services, but help is at hand
A recent Environmental Protection Association (EPA) report, prepared by Sweco, shows the scale of the challenge when it comes to addressing the use of PFAS-containing fire-fighting foam in Ireland. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are synthetic chemicals commonly used in…
Use of foam for firefighting in tank farms of the oil and petrochemical industry – Part 2
Part One of this article described the typical incident scenarios at tank farm fires and presented foam as the most suitable extinguishing agent together with the firefighting equipment most commonly used. In Part Two we look at foam concentrate proportioning…
Firefighting foam action in Wisconsin
Water contamination issues from PFAS are creating pressure on the fire service to make changes in toxic AFFF products. PFAS contamination of drinking water is threatening people’s health in many communities worldwide. Firefighters have been and continue to be placed…
Use of foam for firefighting in tank farms of the oil and petrochemical industry – Part 1
Tank farm fires in the oil and petrochemical industry do not occur often. When they do occur, it is with devastating consequences and negative publicity. This article will describe the typical incident scenarios and present foam as the most suitable…
Perimeter Solutions Expands Presence In The Global Fire Foam Market
Company Completes Acquisition of The Solberg Company Perimeter Solutions, one of the world’s leading producers of fire retardants, foams, and water enhancing gels for managing wildland, industrial, and municipal fires, today announced it has completed the acquisition of Solberg, the…
Firefighting foam under fire for link to water contamination injuries
Foam caused shutdown of drinking wells at Wright-Patterson and will no longer be used at the base. Defense Department has launched a nationwide investigation. A fire suppressant foam linked to the shutdown of two drinking water wells at Wright-Patterson Air Force…
Firefighting Foam – Making Water Wetter
As a largely misunderstood firefighting tactic, the use of foam has at times been confusing to the fire service. The result is that many municipal brigades/departments have just avoided the use of foam, especially Class A foam and have transitioned…
Firefighting Foam Advancements … Then & Now
It is often said that in order to shape the future you need to look back and understand the past. A colleague of mine recently asked: “when and what was the last great innovation in firefighting foam?” I have to…
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