PFAS and Your Stormwater Permit: What to Know

The EPA is preparing the next version of the federal stormwater permit that industrial facilities operate under, and for the first time, it includes a requirement to test for PFAS — a group of manufactured chemicals sometimes called "forever chemicals" because they persist in the environment. Here's where things stand:

• Not yet a Florida requirement. Florida runs its own version of this permit through FDEP rather than the federal government's directly, and FDEP hasn't added a PFAS testing requirement to it.
• Likely coming eventually. Florida's permit has historically been modeled after the federal one, so this isn't a possibility we're dismissing — it's a change we expect to see adopted here at some point, even without a set timeline yet.
• Nothing urgent to do today. As proposed, the new federal rule would require quarterly PFAS sampling once it takes effect — but until Florida adopts something similar, there's no sampling, paperwork, or deadline for your facility to worry about.
• KCI is tracking this on your behalf. We're following the proposal as it moves through the federal rulemaking process, so when Florida's requirements do change, your facility will already be positioned to comply — no scramble, no surprise.

If you have questions about how this could affect your specific facility or industry sector, we're glad to talk it through.