“PFAS in soil – time to act together” An outcome of the international conference “PFAS in soil – forever pollution, forever concern?” held in Berlin, March 2025

Abstract

This conference summary proposes general goals and associated actions for a collaborative effort amongst European countries to address the problem of soil contamination by perfluorinated and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS). It reflects the discussions during the international conference “PFAS in soil – forever pollution, forever concern?” taking place in Berlin/Germany on 25th and 26th of March 2025. The five general goals derived from the discussions suggest to: (i) Strictly prevent future PFAS immissions into soils, (ii) Systematically identify PFAS-contaminated sites, (iii) Provide a powerful fit-for-routine chemical analysis of PFAS in soil, (iv) Establish effective management strategies for PFAS-contaminated sites and (v) Minimize human PFAS exposure via soil (food, feed, drinking water, direct contact). © The Author(s) 2026.