DOD Publishes 2025 Update On Critical PFAS Uses, Recommends Risk-Based Approach To Defining PFAS

The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) has published a July 2025 report entitled Update on Critical Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substance Uses. House Report 118-121, which accompanied the 2024 DOD appropriations bill (H.R. 4365), requested the Secretary of Defense "to submit a report to the congressional defense committees to coordinate with relevant agencies, industries, and academia to research alternatives to defense critical uses of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)." The report presents DOD's plan to research alternatives to mission critical PFAS uses and evaluate and review key technical standards for PFAS critical materials "to ensure that the standards are effective, accurately represent the required performance, and ensure that viable PFAS-free alternatives are not artificially excluded." The conclusion of the report notes that "[t]here remains significant uncertainty regarding the presence of PFAS in products that make up a complex supply chain."