Can Foam Finally Defeat Australia’s PFAS Problem?

Australia turns to foam fractionation to cut PFAS volumes, reduce costs, and push toward lasting remediation

9 Jan 2026

Australia’s long-running effort to address contamination from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances is entering a more decisive phase, as treatment options begin to move beyond indefinite containment. At a growing number of contaminated sites, including major airports and firefighting training facilities, asset owners are reassessing the long-term costs and risks of managing PFAS without reducing the underlying pollutant load.

Attention is increasingly focused on technologies that can concentrate and remove PFAS from water, potentially enabling later destruction. Among these, advanced foam fractionation systems are gaining traction, particularly at large and complex sites where conventional approaches have struggled with high operating costs, large waste volumes and slow progress.

Foam fractionation works by injecting air into contaminated water, allowing PFAS compounds to bind to bubbles and rise to the surface, where they are removed as foam. Unlike filter-based systems, it does not rely on frequent media replacement, and can treat large volumes of water continuously.

The main attraction is scale. By reducing millions of litres of contaminated water into a far smaller volume of concentrated waste, the technology can improve the economics of downstream treatment. For airports and fire training grounds dealing with legacy firefighting foam pollution, this can ease on-site storage pressures and cut transport and disposal costs.

Environmental technology group EVOCRA has been among the companies promoting the approach through site deployments and trials. Industry partners have echoed the emphasis on volume reduction. Engineering firm Arcadis has described it as a key factor in improving PFAS remediation economics, while water technology supplier Ovivo has pointed to the flexibility of modular treatment systems that can be expanded or adapted as regulatory standards change.

“These technologies change the conversation,” one remediation consultant said. “Instead of asking how long we can store PFAS, we are asking how quickly we can reduce it.”

The regulatory setting is also shifting. In some jurisdictions, regulators are placing greater weight on permanent destruction as part of long-term remediation strategies, rather than reliance on containment alone.

Significant hurdles remain. Foam fractionation performance can vary depending on water chemistry, and access to high-temperature or advanced destruction facilities is still limited in parts of Australia. Even so, confidence is growing as full-scale projects begin to show results beyond laboratory and pilot studies.

The broader PFAS sector is showing signs of momentum. As projects move from trials to wider deployment, asset owners, utilities and investors are gaining clearer pathways to reduce long-term liabilities and progress towards cleaner sites.