Company: APT
Filing Date: 2025-03-12
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0001437749-25-007218
Chunk: 12

Company: ALPHA PRO TECH LTD
Filing Date: 2025-03-12
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1A
Chunk 12
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 offered by our competitors and changes in customer designs for our competitors’ products that can affect the demand for the Company’s products.

Environmental laws and regulations may subject us to significant liabilities.

Our U. S. operations, including our manufacturing facilities, are subject to federal, state and local environmental laws and regulations relating to the discharge, storage, treatment, handling, disposal and remediation of certain materials, substances and wastes. Any violation of any of those laws and regulations could cause us to incur substantial liability to the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, to the state environmental agencies in any affected state or to any individuals affected by any such violation. If hazardous substances are released from or located on any of our properties, we could incur substantial costs and damages. Any such liability could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

By way of example, but not limitation, governmental authorities in the U. S. and in other jurisdictions are increasingly focused on potential contamination resulting from the use of so-called “forever chemicals,” most notable at present are per- and polyfluoroalkyl, substances (PFAS). Products containing PFAS have been used in manufacturing, industrial, and consumer applications over many decades, including in some of our engineered materials and components, and are virtually ubiquitous in parts of the environment. Until recently, these substances were largely unregulated. Nevertheless, over the last few years, PFAS regulation has been evolving rapidly. In 2023, the U. S. EPA issued a new rule under the Toxic Substances Control Act, requiring manufacturers and importers of PFAS to submit additional reporting information about production volumes, industrial uses, byproducts, worker exposure, and disposal. In 2023, certain EU member states submitted a proposal to the European Chemicals Agency calling for the phase out of the manufacture, import, sale, and use of PFAS substances beginning in late 2025. In 2024, among other things, U. S. EPA issued new regulations regarding PFAS in drinking water, PFAS reporting obligations under Toxic Substances Control Act, and designated two PFAS chemicals (Perfluorooctanoic acid and Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid) as hazardous substances under Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act. While PFAS regulation continues to advance at the federal level and in many states, the full scope of such regulation is still being developed. In some cases, PFAS compounds are regulated at, or even below, the ability of current technology to detect their