Australia Expands PFAS Restrictions: Drinking Water Limits Tighten in 2027

Tighter Control on "Forever Chemicals"

The Australian National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) has issued a major update to its drinking water guideline, publishing new threshold values for PFAS compounds. The PFOS limit is dropping from 70 to 8 nanograms per liter; the PFOA limit goes from 560 to 30 nanograms per liter. The new limits take effect in early 2027.

Scientific Evidence Base

The decision rests on national epidemiological studies conducted over the past three years and toxicology research carried out across two of Australia's major catchments. Evidence on the effects of PFAS at low doses on the immune system, thyroid function and cholesterol metabolism was decisive. Although Australia's threshold sits above the 4-nanogram limit set by the US EPA in 2024, it ranks among the strictest internationally.

Scope and Hot-Spot Regions

According to mapping work by the National Environmental Science Program, PFAS contamination in Australia is concentrated in:

• Areas around former military airfields (firefighting foam residues)
• Industrial coastal cities
• Industrial leather and textile sites and their surroundings
• Catchments near paper mills and waste management facilities

More than 80 water utilities will need to upgrade existing infrastructure to meet the new limits.

Treatment Technology Market Heats Up

Granular activated carbon (GAC), ion exchange and high-pressure membrane systems are the proven PFAS removal technologies. Investment in PFAS removal infrastructure in the Australian market is expected to reach 4 to 5 billion Australian dollars over the next three years. Demand for activated carbon and specialty resins is expected to push prices upward globally.

Industrial Source Control

In parallel with drinking water standards, industrial discharge limits are also being updated. More than 200 consumer products that use or are known to contain PFAS will be phased out by 2028. The list includes paper packaging, water-repellent textiles and certain firefighting foams.

A Global Trend

PFAS regulation has tightened rapidly worldwide over the past three years. Following the EU, US, Canada and Japan, Australia's strong stance underscores the growing concrete diplomacy around "forever chemicals." Turkey's Ministry of Environment, Urbanisation and Climate Change has also opened the draft of its PFAS regulation for stakeholder review.