The three substance schedules of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants. Annex A lists chemicals for elimination, Annex B for restriction, and Annex C for measures to reduce unintentional production. Dioxins, furans, PCBs, PFOS, PFOA, and PFHxS are all listed across these annexes.
The Stockholm Convention is the multilateral treaty governing Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs). Annex A obligates parties to eliminate production and use, with limited time-bound exemptions; Annex B permits restricted use under specific acceptable purposes; Annex C addresses byproducts of combustion and industrial processes (dioxins, furans, hexachlorobenzene, PCBs) that cannot be designed out of existence and instead require continuous reduction measures.
PFOS was added to Annex B in 2009, PFOA to Annex A in 2019, and PFHxS to Annex A in 2022. These listings drive national PFAS bans, including the EU REACH restriction and parallel actions in Canada and Australia. For project work, Annex A and B listings under Stockholm typically translate into a binding preference for destruction technologies (high-temperature thermal, SCWO) over containment-only remedies.
Also known as: Stockholm Convention, Stockholm Annex A, Stockholm Annex B, Stockholm Annex C, POPs treaty.
Dioxins and Furans (PCDD/PCDF): treatment approach
A family of 210 chlorinated tricyclic aromatic congeners — including 2,3,7,8-TCDD — formed as unintended byproducts of combustion, chlorine chemistry, and legacy herbicide manufacture; persistent, bioaccumulative, and destroyed only by high-temperature thermal treatment.
A regulatory designation for the most effective and advanced stage of development of activities and operating methods. Regulators use BAT to set minimum performance standards for pollution control and contaminated-site remediation, anchored in technical and economic feasibility rather than vendor preference.
The U.S. federal law passed in 1980 that establishes liability, cleanup standards, and the Superfund program for sites contaminated with hazardous substances. The foundational statute for U.S. environmental remediation and the basis for the 2024 designation of PFOA and PFOS as hazardous substances.
A 2001 international treaty in force since 2004 that requires signatory countries to eliminate or restrict the production, use, and release of designated Persistent Organic Pollutants, including PCBs, dioxins, furans, and a growing list of PFAS compounds.
An independent third-party verification process for environmental technology performance, originally administered by the U.S. EPA and now operated by national and international programs in Canada, the European Union, and Asia. ETV documents what a technology actually achieves under defined conditions, separate from vendor marketing claims.