Warminster: Incinerator no longer accepting PFAS waste

By Jenny Wagner & Kyle Bagenstose | The Intelligencer | August 21, 2019

Read full article by Jenny Wagner & Kyle Bagenstose (The Intelligencer)

"Municipal officials say incinerators and landfills are waiting on regulatory agencies to issue guidance, and in the meantime, they can store the waste.

Municipal officials say they are being told incinerators and landfills across the state will not accept waste containing firefighting foam chemicals until regulatory agencies clarify whether it’s acceptable.

“We got booted out of landfills and incinerators,” said Tim Hagey, manager for the Warminster Municipal Authority. “They won’t take it until (the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection) gives them a blessing.”

The issue is the latest headache for municipalities and others as they attempt to tackle per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. Warminster and other municipalities hit with contamination have worked for several years to remove the toxic chemicals from drinking water, which has left them with PFAS-laden filters and materials in need of disposal.

Some scientists and environmental advocates have raised concerns about where that material is disposed, but past reporting from this news organization found that local municipalities are taking the best approach they know of: sending the waste to high-temperature incinerators..."