PFAS Forensics

PFAS Forensics and Source Allocation

When per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination is found at or near a site, identifying where it came from is a critical—and often complex—challenge. Could it be tied to on-site activities, or a nearby airport, fire training center, landfill, incinerator, military base, or biosolid application? The list of potential sources is long, and they’re not always obvious.

Understanding the source of PFAS contamination starts with asking the right questions—and using the right data.

How We Help

At Environmental Standards, we specialize not just in source attribution—identifying a chemical match—but in source allocation—quantifying how much PFAS came from each source. This level of detail is essential in litigation, liability assessment, remediation planning, and regulatory negotiations.

We do this by combining:

• Detailed laboratory data review: We assess which datasets are reliable, relevant, and appropriate to use in modeling.
  
  
• Advanced data visualization and analysis: We use source-apportionment tools, multivariate statistics, and Geographic Information System (GIS) to untangle complex mixtures.
• Scientific judgment: We bring decades of forensic chemistry and fate-and-transport experience to interpret the results and tell a clear, defensible story.

Our Team

Our multidisciplinary team includes Senior Forensic Chemists, Fate-and-Transport Scientists, and Data Analysts. With extensive experience in litigation, expert testimony, and source modeling, we translate complex science into  sound insights that hold up under scrutiny.

Our Capabilities

We combine historical investigation, chemical expertise, and advanced modeling to uncover what happened and who is responsible. Our approach includes:

• Reviewing current and historical site operations
• Evaluating laboratory reports and raw instrument data
• Identifying site-specific and non-target PFAS compounds
• Comparing site signatures with known PFAS-production fingerprints
• Calculating diagnostic ratios to evaluate patterns and trends
• Performing source apportionment using statistical and spatial tools
• Integrating results with geospatial and regulatory context

Deep Data Capability

Our Senior Forensic Chemists use specialized desktop software to directly access and analyze raw instrument data from gas chromatograph (GC), gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer (GC-MS), and liquid chromatograph-tandem mass spectrometer (LC-MS/MS) systems. This allows us to:

• Go beyond summary tables to uncover hidden patterns
• Identify non-target PFAS and by-products
• Match findings against proprietary chemical profile libraries
• Confirm or rule out potential sources with high confidence

Why It Matters

Understanding not just where PFAS came from, but how much came from each source, is critical for allocating liability and making informed remediation and legal decisions. That’s what sets our Forensic Chemistry Team apart—we don’t just trace contamination, we quantify it.

If you’re facing a PFAS-related challenge and need a trusted partner to help untangle the data, determine responsibility, and support your next steps, we are ready to help.