Pesticides Containing a Fluorinated Carbon
EPA’s pesticides program is committed to protecting human health and the environment through rigorous, science-based evaluation. As part of its obligation to ensure that all pesticide products and uses are safe, EPA evaluates them using gold-standard science, robust data requirements, and comprehensive assessment methodologies. This process ensures that EPA’s pesticide reviews allow farmers and other users to have the tools they need to control pests to provide for a safe and abundant food supply while maintaining the highest standards to ensure human health and the environment are protected.
Under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), a pesticide cannot be registered unless EPA determines its use will not pose unreasonable adverse effects on human health or the environment. The same standard applies to pesticides that contain a fluorinated carbon. Regardless of whether a chemical meets a specific structural definition or is part of a category or class of chemicals, the Agency utilizes a comprehensive assessment process under FIFRA to evaluate the potential risks of pesticide use. This robust, chemical-specific process considers both hazard and exposure in determining whether the pesticide under review may pose risk to human health or the environment.
This rigorous process relies on a variety of data sources, including registrant-submitted data that meet stringent EPA regulatory requirements, publicly available scientific literature, and feedback received from stakeholders through public comments. EPA ensures transparency by issuing public notices in the Federal Register and offering the public opportunity to comment on applications for products containing new active ingredients and significant uses, including those that contain a fluorinated carbon. This multi-layered approach ensures that every scientific aspect of these compounds is thoroughly evaluated before any registration decision is made.
Among other classes of pesticides, EPA occasionally receives and evaluates registration applications for products containing one or more fluorinated carbons. As discussed further below, per- and polyfluoralkyl substances (PFAS) are defined in certain contexts as substances containing two or more fluorinated carbons, and in others as substances containing one or more fluorinated carbons. However, to date, EPA has not adopted a particular definition for its Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) because each substance is evaluated on a chemical-specific basis regardless of classification.
Below is a list of frequently asked questions regarding pesticidal substances containing a fluorinated carbon and how they are evaluated by the Agency. This resource is intended to better inform the public about EPA’s gold-standard science pesticide registration process. This web page does not, and is not intended to, interpret or amend any regulatory or statutory provision, nor does it consider, decide, or prejudge any pending petitions for rulemaking under the pesticide program. Rather, this information is being provided purely on an informational basis. EPA does not, and will not, use this webpage for any regulatory purpose.
On this page:
How does EPA evaluate pesticides containing a fluorinated carbon?
Are there any benefits of pesticides containing a fluorinated carbon?
Have other countries registered pesticides containing a fluorinated carbon?
Background on PFAS Definitions
Under FIFRA, EPA must ensure that any pesticide registered by the Agency does not pose unreasonable adverse effects on human health or the environment through comprehensive evaluation. This standard applies to every pesticide. Pesticides containing one or multiple, partially or fully fluorinated carbons undergo the same rigorous, science-based assessment. As part of EPA pesticide registration decisions, the Agency evaluates a broad range of factors, including whether a compound or its degradates are persistent in the environment; whether they may bioaccumulate; and whether they pose a particular hazard (e.g., reproductive or chronic toxicity) to humans, wildlife, or other off-target vegetation.
Pesticide registration decisions are based on extensive data requirements as outlined in 40 CFR 158, which include studies that evaluate product chemistry, mammalian and ecological toxicity, efficacy, environmental fate, residue chemistry, and exposure. As part of these requirements, EPA receives data addressing the persistence of a pesticide (e.g., degradation, mobility, field level terrestrial and aquatic dissipation studies), the potential for a pesticide to bioaccumulate (e.g., oyster and fish bioconcentration studies), and the human health and ecological toxicity of a pesticide, including studies on a variety of species, lifestages, and routes/durations of exposure. If EPA’s review identifies additional data are needed beyond these requirements to support the registration of a pesticide, the Agency will require those additional studies to ensure the most complete assessment possible.
EPA may only register a pesticide for use once the Agency’s scientific evaluation demonstrates it does not pose unreasonable adverse effects, regardless of whether the molecule contains a fluorinated carbon. This determination applies equally to all pesticides, ensuring consistent application of the highest scientific standards.
Are there any pesticidal active ingredients registered by EPA that are considered per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)?
There are thousands of different kinds of chemicals that contain a single or multiple, fully or partially fluorinated carbons. These chemicals can show vast differences between them in chemical, biological, and toxicological properties. Whether any of these chemicals are considered PFAS depends on the context of how that chemical is being considered and which definition is applied. Importantly, regardless of whether a pesticidal active ingredient has a fluorinated carbon or not, EPA conducts a comprehensive scientific assessment to evaluate any potential risks to human health or the environment on a chemical-specific basis, as well as any benefits from the use of the pesticide, before granting a registration under FIFRA. This approach ensures that every compound receives the same rigorous scrutiny regardless of its structural characteristics.
Are there any benefits of pesticides containing a fluorinated carbon?
Yes, registered pesticides that contain a fluorinated carbon may offer many benefits for farmers, users, and the public. Some of these products offer new uses for farmers of specialty and minor use crops, such as fruits and vegetables, who often have fewer tools available to protect crops from pests. These products may end up being more effective, which in turn could lead to potentially higher crop yields, more efficient utilization of cropland, and less water and pesticide usage. Other products have offered new modes of action for controlling pests, which helps with managing pest resistance and can be incorporated into Integrated Pest Management (IPM) strategies.
Over time, pesticide manufacturers have moved away from classes of chemicals, such as organochlorines (DDT, dieldrin, etc.), that are generally more toxic and can accumulate in the environment and food chains. Many fluorinated compounds—especially shorter chain molecules, such as those containing only a single fluorinated carbon—can be a less toxic alternative compared to some legacy pesticides. Some uses of these fluorinated pesticides have also qualified for reduced risk status. EPA individually evaluates every proposed pesticidal compound to ensure its use does not pose unreasonable adverse effects to human health or the environment and meets the standard for registration.
Have other countries registered pesticides containing a fluorinated carbon?
Yes, pesticides containing a fluorinated carbon registered or proposed for registration by EPA in recent years have also been registered or are being considered for registration by other countries. This includes the European Union, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Brazil, Argentina, New Zealand, and South Korea, among others.
Background on PFAS Definitions
There is currently no single, commonly accepted definition of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). In 2023, EPA’s Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT) in a final rule defined PFAS as a chemical containing at least one of these three structures:
1) R-(CF2)-CF(R’)R’’, where both the CF2 and CF moieties are saturated carbons ;
2) R-CF2OCF2-R’, where R and R’ can either be F, O, or saturated carbons;
3) CF3C(CF3)R’R’’, where R’ and R” can either be F or saturated carbons.
In its response to comments, OPPT explained that molecules containing a single, fully or partially fluorinated carbon are less likely to persist in the environment or pose greater bioaccumulation or toxicity risks than molecules with two or more fluorinated carbons.
In 2021, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) provided that “fluorinated substances that contain at least one fully fluorinated methyl or methylene carbon atom (without any H/Cl/Br/I atom attached to it), i.e. with a few noted exceptions, any chemical with at least a perfluorinated methyl group (–CF3) or a perfluorinated methylene group (–CF2–) is a PFAS.” OECD qualified that its, “general definition of PFASs is based on molecular structure alone and serves as a starting and reference point,” and that, “individual users may define their own working scope of PFASs for specific activities according to their specific needs by combining the general definition of PFASs with additional considerations.”