PFAS Consulting

PFAS issues are no longer limited to major industrial sites or headline litigation. They now affect property evaluation, development planning, groundwater risk, remediation strategy, regulatory decision-making, and long-term liability across a wide range of projects.

Tunnell Subsurface Consulting helps clients think clearly about PFAS in relation to groundwater, subsurface conditions, site history, and project risk. The goal is not to overstate the issue. The goal is to identify where PFAS may matter, where it may affect decisions, and where a project may need a more informed look at environmental and geologic conditions.

What Is PFAS?

PFAS refers to a large group of man-made chemicals often called “forever chemicals” because they are highly persistent in the environment. They have been used in many industrial and commercial applications, including firefighting foam, manufacturing processes, coatings, textiles, packaging, and other consumer and industrial materials.

What makes PFAS important is not just that it exists, but that it can remain in soil, groundwater, surface water, and waste systems for long periods of time. Once present, it can complicate site conditions, redevelopment strategy, water management, investigation planning, and future property use. The concerns are not only environmental. They can also become operational, regulatory, financial, and legal.

Why PFAS Matters to Projects

PFAS can affect projects in ways that are easy to overlook at the front end. A site may have groundwater concerns, historical use concerns, landfill-related concerns, stormwater or drainage concerns, or a broader environmental history that changes how the property should be evaluated.

In some cases, PFAS concerns are tied to obvious site uses, such as industrial operations, airports, military properties, landfills, wastewater systems, or known release areas. In other cases, the risk is less visible and may only become apparent when site history, subsurface conditions, and water pathways are reviewed together.

That is why PFAS should not be treated as an isolated environmental buzzword. It is often part of a larger site-condition picture involving geology, groundwater movement, land use, historical disposal practices, and development planning.

Where TSC Helps

TSC helps clients approach PFAS issues from a groundwater and subsurface perspective. That can include support in understanding how site history, drainage, groundwater conditions, and geologic pathways may affect PFAS-related decision-making.

This work may involve:

• Site-history review 

• Groundwater and subsurface condition evaluation

• Drainage and water-pathway review

• Early-stage project risk screening

• Support for redevelopment and due diligence 

• Technical review for legal, insurance, or regulatory matters

• General education where PFAS concerns may affect planning, property use, or liability

TSC is especially valuable where PFAS is connected to real site conditions rather than treated as an abstract issue. Many project decisions improve when someone can evaluate both the technical groundwater side and the broader risk implications at the same time.

PFAS General Education and Advisory Support

Not every PFAS concern begins with a known release, active contamination, or a defined site investigation. Many clients first need a practical understanding of PFAS itself—what it is, why it matters, where it shows up, and how it can affect property, groundwater, development, operations, or liability. TSC provides general PFAS education and advisory support to help clients understand the issue clearly and identify when further review may be warranted. 

Why TSC

TSC brings together geology, groundwater experience, field construction knowledge, and legal training. That combination helps clients think through PFAS issues in a more practical way.

PFAS concerns are rarely just laboratory issues. They affect how a site is understood, how water moves, how decisions are documented, and how risk is evaluated over time. TSC helps clients make sense of those intersections and move forward with better information.

A Practical Approach

Not every site has a PFAS problem. Not every project needs a major PFAS investigation. But where PFAS may affect groundwater, site use, redevelopment, or long-term planning, it is worth taking a careful and informed look.

TSC helps clients do that in a practical way grounded in real subsurface and groundwater experience.

Call to Action

If your property or project involves groundwater, site history, redevelopment, drainage concerns, or possible PFAS-related risk, Tunnell Subsurface Consulting can help you take a closer look.