April 29, 2026
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued an update earlier this month to its per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) destruction and disposal guidance, first released in December 2020. The guidance is primarily intended to serve decision makers charged with finding effective ways to destroy or dispose of their PFAS waste.
Congress directed EPA to develop and publish interim guidance on PFAS destruction and disposal in Section 7361 of the Fiscal Year 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The guidance must address (though, is not limited to) certain PFAS-containing materials specifically listed in the NDAA, such as aqueous film-forming foam, soil and biosolids, textiles, spent filters, and landfill leachate. The guidance must also address the potential for PFAS releases during destruction and disposal, including providing testing and monitoring guidance, and consider potentially impacted vulnerable populations.
The NDAA requires EPA to update the guidance as appropriate, and at least once every three years. EPA published the first version of the guidance in December 2020 and the first update of the guidance in April 2024. In an April 28, 2025 press release on PFAS, EPA announced Administrator Lee Zeldin’s commitment to provide more frequent, annual updates to the destruction and disposal guidance rather than the statutory minimum of once every three years.
The April 20, 2026 Interim Guidance on the Destruction and Disposal of Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances and Materials Containing Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances provides the latest information on destruction and disposal options for PFAS and PFAS-containing materials that are not consumer products. This guidance builds on the two previous versions and incorporates public comments EPA received on the 2024 guidance.
As with the first two versions of the guidance, EPA presents the current science, including uncertainties, for three leading commercially available PFAS destruction and disposal methods: underground injection, landfilling, and thermal treatment. The Agency also offers interim storage as a short-term waste management option, and encourages waste managers to select the destruction, disposal, or storage option with the lowest potential for PFAS releases to the environment. The most appropriate option will depend on the characteristics of the waste in question. EPA discusses the applicable considerations for each destruction/disposal technology in the guidance. For descriptions (which continue to apply under the 2026 interim guidance update) of these three technologies, see our April 10, 2024 blog post.
In addition to the three primary destruction/disposal methods covered, the interim guidance also includes a technology evaluation framework to help determine safety and effectiveness of newer destruction and disposal technologies.
The guidance does not establish binding requirements. It serves only as a guide for those needing to dispose of PFAS or PFAS-containing materials.
EPA is accepting public comments on this guidance through June 29, 2026. Comments will inform the Agency’s next guidance update.