DNREC and the DHSS Division of Public Health are working with federal agencies to protect the environment and public health in Delaware from the effects of a group of synthetic chemicals known as PFAS.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) include thousands of synthetic chemicals including PFOA, PFOS, and GenX. They have been used throughout the world in manufacturing, firefighting, and consumer products since the 1940s.

Delaware state agencies are working together and with partners to study PFAS in drinking water, PFAS in surface waters of the state and PFAS in wastewater systems in Delaware.

The state maintains a list of sites being investigated by DNREC for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in drinking water, groundwater or surface water in Delaware.

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PFAS Contacts in Delaware State Government

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Delaware PFAS Awareness and Outreach Grant

The Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) and the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) are offering grant funding for projects to increase awareness and outreach about per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)  in Delaware.

Staff from both departments hosted a webinar on Nov. 6, at which they gave an overview of the grant, including what projects qualify, what organizations may apply and the application process.

The webinar was recorded and is available for review. There is also a set of questions and answers about the grant program.

They will also hold a series of virtual Office Hours at which grant applicants and stakeholders can ask questions regarding the grant application, on-going projects and general project questions. Those Office Hours will be recorded (when there are attendees with questions) and are posted here.

The Office Hour events will be held in November, December and January and will be posted on the State Public Meeting Calendar, the DNREC Events Calendar, and on this page.

Related Documents

Program Guidelines and Application

Project Rubric

About PFAS

PFAS do not readily break down in the environment and can accumulate in living things. Some toxicological studies have found that exposure to these substances can cause serious health effects.

PFAS are considered “emerging contaminants” by federal environmental and public health regulators. A group of state and federal agencies are investigating PFAS, their sources, and their presence in the environment. This group includes DNREC, the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS), the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the US Geological Survey (USGS) and the CDC’s National Center for Environmental Health/Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.

In 2018, the DNREC Division of Waste and Hazardous Substances adopted a policy to define where sampling for PFAS may occur in groundwater and surface water within the state. In 2023, this policy was updated to include other media and add select PFAS as hazardous substances regulated under the Hazardous Substance Cleanup Act (HSCA), pertinent aspects of the addition, as well as expectations related to sampling and characterization of these emerging contaminants. (Learn more about the PFAS sampling policy update)

In April of 2024, the EPA adopted a rule to designate PFOA and PFOS as hazardous substances under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) known as Superfund. The designation allows the EPA to investigate and clean up releases of these substances into the environment. A companion policy also directs the EPA to focus on parties that have manufactured PFAS or used PFAS in their manufacturing process. Learn more the EPA PFAS cleanup rule or read the EPA’s PFAS Cleanup rule.

DNREC also lists PFOA and PFOS as hazardous substances as well as six other PFAS compounds including:

• Perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA)
• Perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA)
• Perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS)
• Perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA)
• Perfluorobutane sulfonic acid (PFBS)
• Hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid (HFPO-DA, or GenX chemicals)

Related Topics:  drinking water, EPA, GenX, groundwater, Health and Safety, HSCA, PFAS, PFOA, superfund, waste and hazardous substances, water filtration, well