What Is AFFF Firefighting Foam?
AFFF, short for aqueous film-forming foam, is a firefighting foam used against fuel fires. Describing the fire suppression system at the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility, the EPA says the system uses AFFF to create a foam blanket that extinguishes a fuel fire, and that AFFF contains per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS.
The military has been phasing it out on a deadline that keeps moving. The 2020 defense authorization law barred fluorinated AFFF at military installations from October 1, 2024, and a May 2025 Pentagon briefing says a first one-year waiver pushed that to October 1, 2025. A July 2026 Department of War briefing says the law, as amended for fiscal year 2026, allows two one-year waivers of an October 1, 2026 deadline, and in a July 31, 2026 letter to the House Armed Services Committee the department said a waiver extending the deadline to October 1, 2027 is necessary, citing the time needed for a safe transition of about 1,000 facilities and over 7,400 mobile assets.
States have restricted it too. Washington law has barred manufacturers since July 1, 2020 from making, knowingly selling or distributing class B firefighting foam with intentionally added PFAS for sale or use in the state, except where federal law requires PFAS.
AFFF is also the subject of major litigation. In the federal AFFF multidistrict litigation in South Carolina, the court says plaintiffs generally allege that AFFF containing PFOA or PFOS contaminated groundwater near military bases, airports and other industrial sites where it was used on liquid fuel fires. 3M announced that its settlement with US public water suppliers received final approval from the federal court in Charleston on March 29, 2024.
Sources checked September 15, 2026. Every point below links the page it came from.
The sources behind this answer
- Government sourceThe EPA says the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility's fire suppression system uses AFFF to create a foam blanket that extinguishes a fuel fire, and that AFFF contains PFAS. US EPA ↗
- Regulatory filingThe defense authorization act for fiscal year 2020 says fluorinated aqueous film-forming foam may not be used at any military installation on or after October 1, 2024, or an earlier date if compliance is determined to be possible. US Congress, Public Law 116-92, via GovInfo ↗
- Regulatory filingA May 2025 Pentagon briefing to Congress says the Secretary of Defense invoked a first one-year waiver extending the AFFF deadline to October 1, 2025. US Department of Defense ↗
- Regulatory filingA July 2026 Department of War briefing says the 2020 law, as amended by the defense act for fiscal year 2026, allows two one-year waivers to extend an October 1, 2026 deadline to stop using and buying fluorinated AFFF. US Department of War ↗
- Regulatory filingIn a July 31, 2026 letter to the House Armed Services Committee, the Department of War said a one-year waiver extending the AFFF deadline to October 1, 2027 is necessary for a safe transition of about 1,000 facilities and over 7,400 mobile assets. US Department of War ↗
- Regulatory filingWashington law says that beginning July 1, 2020, a manufacturer may not make, knowingly sell or distribute class B firefighting foam with intentionally added PFAS for sale or use in the state, except where federal law requires PFAS. Washington State Legislature ↗
- Legal caseThe federal court handling the AFFF multidistrict litigation says plaintiffs generally allege that AFFF containing PFOA or PFOS contaminated groundwater near military bases, airports and other industrial sites where it was used on liquid fuel fires. US District Court for the District of South Carolina, MDL No. 2873 ↗
- Brand statement3M announced that on March 29, 2024 its settlement agreement with US public water suppliers received final approval from the US District Court in Charleston, South Carolina. 3M ↗
Sources checked September 15, 2026. A brand statement is the company’s own claim, which we report but have not verified. Our grades are model-based estimates, not lab tests.