Use of toxic Pfas in consumer goods must be urgently restricted, MPs say

Pfas contamination in Bentham, North Yorkshire, is on an industrial scale after decades of production of firefighting foam at a local factory. Photograph: AP S (uk)/Alamy

On 15 January, members of the House of Commons environmental audit committee (EAC) visited Bentham, the North Yorkshire town that has the highest levels of Pfas contamination in the UK.

Colloquially known as “forever chemicals”, Pfas (perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances) do not naturally degrade or decompose. This persistence gives them special properties with useful applications in both industrial and consumer products.