Latest news with #HFPO-DA
Time of India
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
EPA to rollback 'forever chemical' rule, extend timelines
Washington: The EPA will rescind much of the Biden administration's first nationwide drinking water standard aimed at protecting people from toxic " forever chemicals " known as PFAS found in many household items, but will maintain current limits on two of these chemicals, it announced on Wednesday. Dubbed "forever chemicals" because they do not easily break down in the human body or environment, PFAS are found in hundreds of consumer and commercial products, including non-stick pans, cosmetics, firefighting foams and stain-resistant clothing. The rule finalized last year by the EPA under the Biden administration had set limits for five individual PFAS chemicals: PFOA, PFOS, PFNA, PFHxS, and HFPO-DA. It gave all public water systems three years to complete monitoring for these chemicals and required them to inform the public of the level of PFAS measured in their drinking water. In cases where PFAS chemicals are found at levels that exceed the standards, the water systems were required to install systems to reduce PFAS in their drinking water by 2029. Under the new proposal under President Donald Trump, the EPA would allow drinking water systems more time to develop plans for addressing PFOA and PFOS and extend the compliance date for those two PFAS chemicals to 2031. It would also rescind the regulations and reconsider the regulatory determinations for the other three PFAS chemicals. EPA plans to issue a proposed rule this fall and finalize it by spring 2026. "This will support water systems across the country, including small systems in rural communities, as they work to address these contaminants," EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in a statement. "EPA will also continue to use its regulatory and enforcement tools to hold polluters accountable." Separately, the state of New Jersey on Tuesday announced what it called the largest statewide PFAS settlement of $450 million in the state's history with chemicals producer 3M. The EPA also announced on Wednesday it will launch a campaign called PFAS OUT to connect with every public water utility known to need capital improvements to address PFAS in their system.
E&E News
14-05-2025
- Politics
- E&E News
EPA ditches historic ‘forever chemicals' rule
The Trump administration will roll back a landmark regulation on 'forever chemicals' in drinking water, two weeks after EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin promised to address contamination from the toxic, man-made substances. EPA will rescind the first-ever nationwide limits in tap water for the chemicals, known as PFAS, which are considered unsafe even at low levels. The agency will also push back the deadline for when water utilities need to filter out two types of PFAS, from 2029 to 2031. The new plan could have an outsize effect on communities living near contaminated Defense Department sites and near chemical manufacturing plants. It could also pose legal challenges for the administration, because EPA is limited in its ability to 'backslide' on drinking water protections under the Safe Drinking Water Act. Advertisement Zeldin said the agency is taking a balanced approach to PFAS, ensuring water providers are not burdened by costly regulations. 'We are on a path to uphold the agency's nationwide standards to protect Americans from PFOA and PFOS in their water,' he said in the announcement. 'At the same time, we will work to provide common-sense flexibility in the form of additional time for compliance.' But critics described the rollback as a win for chemical companies, which had sued along with water utilities to overturn EPA's rule. PFAS do not degrade naturally; are extremely difficult to destroy; and may damage the human immune system, kidneys, liver and reproductive functions. They've also been linked to a slew of cancers. PFOA and PFOS are two of the six PFAS that EPA had capped in drinking water in its rule last year. Because of their extreme toxicity, PFOA and PFOS had already been phased out of production, though they continue to show up in waterways. EPA's rule also targeted four other PFAS still being manufactured that have also been found to be toxic. Now, the agency is reconsidering whether to set limits at all for those substances: PFHxS, PFNA, HFPO-DA and PFBS. That could leave people living near Defense Department sites more exposed to PFAS in their drinking water, said Anthony Spaniola, whose well water at his summer home in Oscoda, Michigan, was deemed unsafe to drink nine years ago. PFHxS has been used in military-grade firefighting foam and is part of the 'alphabet soup' of forever chemicals that still contaminate the Oscoda area, Spaniola said. 'Rolling that back will have a dramatically negative impact on my community, and certainly other defense communities around the country,' he said. Similarly, people living in parts of North Carolina, Ohio and West Virginia could face a tougher battle fighting contamination if EPA walks away from regulating HFPO-DA. Also known as GenX, the substance was first manufactured by DuPont and is now being made by its spinoff, Chemours. It's been found at high levels in the Cape Fear River in North Carolina and in the Ohio River, near two of the company's manufacturing sites. David Altman, an environmental attorney representing an Ohio water utility facing contamination from PFOA and GenX, said there is 'no scientific reason or public health reason' why the latter substance shouldn't be regulated. 'It's literally stunning. I suppose everybody has to be grateful that the oldest and most studied chemicals in this group are going to be adhered to in terms of cleanup, but this is a step in the wrong direction,' Altman said. 'It literally threatens the health of people.' EPA said a new, less stringent regulation on certain PFAS in drinking water would be proposed this fall and finalized next spring. It will also establish a 'federal exemption framework' for potential drinking water rules and will launch a PFAS outreach program for water providers, according to the announcement. 'This action would help address the most significant compliance challenges EPA has heard from public water systems, members of Congress, and other stakeholders, while supporting actions to protect the American people from certain PFAS in drinking water,' the agency said. EPA could face an uphill battle in crafting a new PFAS regulation. The Safe Drinking Water Act states that EPA can only set regulations for pollutants in drinking water that 'maintain, or provide for greater, protection' of human health.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
EPA to rollback 'forever chemical' rule, extend timelines
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The EPA will rescind much of the Biden administration's first nationwide drinking water standard aimed at protecting people from toxic "forever chemicals" known as PFAS found in many household items, but will maintain current limits on two of these chemicals, it announced on Wednesday. Dubbed "forever chemicals" because they do not easily break down in the human body or environment, PFAS are found in hundreds of consumer and commercial products, including non-stick pans, cosmetics, firefighting foams and stain-resistant clothing. The rule finalized last year by the EPA under the Biden administration had set limits for five individual PFAS chemicals: PFOA, PFOS, PFNA, PFHxS, and HFPO-DA. It gave all public water systems three years to complete monitoring for these chemicals and required them to inform the public of the level of PFAS measured in their drinking water. In cases where PFAS chemicals are found at levels that exceed the standards, the water systems were required to install systems to reduce PFAS in their drinking water by 2029. Under the new proposal under President Donald Trump, the EPA would allow drinking water systems more time to develop plans for addressing PFOA and PFOS and extend the compliance date for those two PFAS chemicals to 2031. It would also rescind the regulations and reconsider the regulatory determinations for the other three PFAS chemicals. EPA plans to issue a proposed rule this fall and finalize it by spring 2026. "This will support water systems across the country, including small systems in rural communities, as they work to address these contaminants," EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in a statement. "EPA will also continue to use its regulatory and enforcement tools to hold polluters accountable.' Separately, the state of New Jersey on Tuesday announced what it called the largest statewide PFAS settlement of $450 million in the state's history with chemicals producer 3M. The EPA also announced on Wednesday it will launch a campaign called PFAS OUT to connect with every public water utility known to need capital improvements to address PFAS in their system.
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Yahoo
454% over limit: Chemours accused of threatening drinking water via illegal PFAS dumps
A West Virginia environmental group has presented evidence indicating a chemical giant is persisting in unlawfully dumping a toxic chemical into the Ohio River amid a federal court case the group filed to stop the pollution. A motion on behalf of the West Virginia Rivers Coalition in that case Tuesday asked the court to stop the Chemours Company FC LLC from what the group says is Chemours violating its water pollution limits for the industrial chemical that can have significant health impacts. The Rivers Coalition says the chemical is discharging from two outlets at Chemours' Washington Works plant in Wood County into the Ohio River. The Ohio River is a drinking water source for more than 5 million people. Tuesday's court filing cites state Department of Environmental Protection discharge monitoring reports to allege Chemours exceeded its average monthly limit in November 2024 for hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid, known as HFPO-DA, at the two outlets by 454% and 166%, respectively. The pollution spike was so large it was noticeable 270 river miles downstream in Cincinnati's drinking water intake, according to the court filing. HFPO-DA is one of a class of chemicals called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS, which have been dubbed 'forever chemicals' because they persist in the bloodstream. The motion seeking a preliminary injunction comes in a Rivers Coalition lawsuit against Chemours filed in December to stop alleged permit exceedances at the Washington Works plant. 'Without an injunction, Chemours will effectively have an unlimited license to pollute the Ohio River and downstream drinking water indefinitely,' Tuesday's motion stated. The litigation comes amid the long-lingering limbo of a PFAS cleanup plan proposed by Chemours in August 2023 and still under U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as that agency faces deep personnel and resource cuts under the Trump administration. Multistate drinking water risk escalation feared Rivers Coalition attorneys submitted testimony from Greater Cincinnati Water Works treatment superintendent Jeff Swertfeger stating a significant increase in discharge levels of HFPO-DA since July 2024 as reported by Chemours corresponds with Cincinnati drinking water utility detections of high HFPO-DA levels in the Ohio River at the Richard Miller Treatment Plant. Almost 90% of water supplied by the Greater Cincinnati Water Works comes from the plant, according to Swertfeger's testimony dated Feb. 20. The Greater Cincinnati Water Works is concerned elevated HFPO-DA levels reportedly being discharged by Chemours from its Washington Works plant may pose an increased public health risk to Kentucky and Ohio communities that use the Ohio River as their drinking water source, Swertfeger said in his testimony. In the complaint filed on its behalf Tuesday, the Rivers Coalition objects to what it said would be an 'unconscionable delay in treatment' stemming from Chemours' request of the DEP and EPA for a three-year compliance schedule to upgrade its treatment system. The complaint contends Chemours can reduce discharges of HFPO-DA to the Ohio River by reducing the amount of fluoropolymers it makes since HFPO-DA is a key part of the fluoropolymer manufacturing process. Chemours has said fluoropolymers aid in making semiconductors, automobiles and airplanes. Rivers Coalition attorneys asked the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia to bar Chemours from violating its HFPO-DA permit limits 'by any means necessary,' including reducing the production that leads to process wastewater containing HFPO-DA or sending that wastewater offsite for disposal by deep-well injection or incineration. The motion was filed by attorneys at Lewisburg-based environmental law firm Appalachian Mountain Advocates and Washington, D.C.-based human rights-focused law firm Public Justice. AHFPO-DA has been linked to cancer, endocrine disruption and reproductive and immune system harms. The Rivers Coalition lawsuit has asked the court to make Chemours pay up to $66,712 a day for each Clean Water Act violation determined, per a section of the law — and restore the environment 'to its prior condition.' Chemours says it's committed to being a 'good neighbor' Chemours spokeswoman Cassie Olszewski said in an email Wednesday the company is disappointed by the preliminary injunction request, claiming the Rivers Coalition's concerns already are being addressed through an April 2023 consent order between the EPA and Chemours. That consent order required Chemours to develop and submit a plan to comply with permitted limits for PFAS discharges into the Ohio River. But the lack of EPA approval has held up potential pollution control since the plan estimates that it would take 14 months for design, five months for bidding and contracting, nine months for permitting and 10 months for construction. EPA spokeswoman Amanda Hancher said Wednesday the plan Chemours submitted in 2023 still is under review and declined further comment. Olszewski noted that Chemours is awaiting approval of its plan. 'As always, Chemours is committed to being a good neighbor and invites the Coalition to engage directly with the Washington Works team as a community stakeholder,' Olszewski said. The EPA terminated 388 employees after a 'thorough review of agency functions in accordance with President Trump's executive orders,' the EPA press office said in an email. Many more EPA employees have been placed on administrative leave, and further cuts are expected to programs and funding aimed at addressing pollution. DEP cites wait for cleanup plan OK after permit exceedances A DEP emergency response report in response to a spill reported on the Washington Works permit and investigated on Jan. 8, 2025 noted results at the two facility outlets into the Ohio River highlighted by the Rivers Coalition lawsuit 63% and 56% above the limits, respectively. In the report, a DEP inspector observed Chemours consistently exceeds permitted effluent limits for HFPO-DA during wet weather periods. No enforcement action was taken, the report stated, noting Chemours was awaiting EPA approval of its 2023 cleanup plan to 'begin large-scale corrective measures.' If approved and implemented, that plan would address four outlets at Chemours' Washington Works facility, three of which discharge directly into the Ohio River. The plan pledges that it would result in consistently meeting water pollution control permit limits for two PFAS: HFPO-DA and perfluorooctanoic acid, or PFOA. Under the plan, the outlet with the highest average flow at 47 million gallons per day would be addressed by diverting and treating dry weather flows. Chemours reported Nov. 21, 2024, sample results 183% and 8% above permit limits in a Dec. 9 letter to the DEP, saying the exceedances likely were caused by a 2-inch rain event combined with air deposition from the facility. The toxic legacy at Washington Works DuPont began using PFOA to make Teflon-products at the Washington Works site in 1951. PFOA was replaced at the facility by DuPont with HFPO-DA, which has been used there as a polymer processing aid since 2013, per the EPA. Chemours, which was spun off from DuPont in 2015, took over the site that year. After PFOA used to make Teflon-related products at the Washington Works facility discharged into water supplies, people living in the area experienced increased rates of: * Testicular and kidney cancer * Thyroid disease * Ulcerative colitis * Pregnancy-induced hypertension Ohio officials announced a proposed $110 million settlement with manufacturers that included Chemours and DuPont in November 2023. West Virginia has refrained from similar legal action against the manufacturers over PFAS. The EPA has said DuPont failed for more than two decades to report data indicating PFAS health risks from manufacturing at the Washington Works plant. The company agreed to pay $10.25 million for reporting violations in 2005 in what the EPA then said was the largest civil administrative penalty it ever obtained under a federal environmental statute. In 2021, DuPont, Corteva Inc. and the Chemours Co. settled for $83 million in multidistrict litigation over PFOA contamination of drinking water supplies. The companies also agreed to establish a cost-sharing arrangement and escrow account of up to $1 billion to support future legacy PFAS liabilities coming from before Chemours was formed as a spinoff of DuPont's performance chemicals division in 2015.
