Latest news with #ToxicReleaseInventory
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Arkansas to test surface waters for PFAS, identify contamination sources
Arkansas will begin testing surface waters for PFAS using $1.8 million in grant funding. (Mary Hennigan/Arkansas Advocate) The Arkansas Natural Resources Commission approved a $1.8 million grant to test surface waters for PFAS, the first known statewide effort to catalogue potential contamination from these 'forever chemicals.' PFAS, which stands for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are a group of thousands of chemicals that don't break down naturally and have been linked to a number of health concerns, such as cancer. Revelations of PFAS' health implications — and how chemical companies knew for decades about the dangers they posed — have led to thousands of lawsuits, with many claiming it caused cancer. States, including Arkansas, have also sued. The Division of Environmental Quality will use the funding to test surface waters for contamination. DEQ submitted a pilot project proposal to the commission last year requesting funds from the emerging contaminants allocation of the state revolving loan fund, said Melony Martinez, Department of Energy and Environment spokesperson. The multi-year project will use a 'phased approach to evaluate potential sources of PFAS' along with how it enters state waters. 'DEQ proposes to evaluate the status of PFAS in Arkansas' waters before considering implementation of monitoring requirements, pretreatment requirements, or other permit conditions for PFAS as recommended by the EPA,' Martinez said. The Environmental Protection Agency under the Biden administration moved aggressively to regulate PFAS in drinking water and surface waters, and classified the chemicals as a hazardous substance under the federal Superfund law. The Trump EPA has begun efforts to roll back some of those policies. The EPA announced last week that drinking water limits on four PFAS chemicals would be scrapped, while limits on PFOA and PFOS — two of the most common chemicals in the group — would be kept, but would not go into effect until 2031, two years later than originally scheduled. However, the EPA also said in April that it plans to take extensive action on PFAS. 'We are tackling PFAS from all of EPA's program offices, advancing research and testing, stopping PFAS from getting into drinking water systems, holding polluters accountable, and providing certainty for passive receivers,' EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in a press release. The EPA plans to list PFAS on the Toxic Release Inventory, a list of hazardous chemicals and substances, while making efforts to hold polluters responsible for PFAS contamination, according to the release. Arkansas, Tennessee, Wyoming and Washington D.C. do not have existing or planned PFAS standards or limits for drinking water, according to an April report by the Environmental Council of the States, a national nonprofit, nonpartisan association of state environmental agency leaders. Stacie Wassell, head of DEQ's Office of Water Quality, told commissioners Wednesday that identifying and addressing PFAS contamination at the source was more cost-effective than trying to do so during the drinking water treatment process. 'It would be much cheaper to prevent it from contaminating our waters of the state than to remove it on the backside after it's already been contaminated,' Wassell said. State regulators have suspected that sources of PFAS contamination exist in the state, outside of two known sites — the Little Rock Air Force Base in Jacksonville and a former BASF facility in West Memphis. 'There are likely numerous other AFFF contamination sites in Arkansas that are yet to be investigated,' according to a DEQ memo written in March 2023 that was obtained via an Arkansas Freedom of Information Act request. 'At present E&E has no information regarding dumping sites or industrial users of PFAs,' the memo reads. 'Industrial contamination sites likely exist in Arkansas, but due to lack of funding, equipment and human capital, no concerted, widespread investigation of PFAs contamination has occurred. … To date no field work has been done regarding PFAs.' AFFF is a type of firefighting foam used by the military and other entities due to its efficiency in putting out jet fuel fires, and is a leading cause of PFAS pollution.
Yahoo
24-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Scholar sounds alarm about disturbing hazards inside US prisons: 'People actually died in those conditions'
Prisons across the nation expose incarcerated individuals to environmental hazards such as air pollution and extreme heat, and one Massachusetts Institute of Technology scholar is advocating for major reform. Ufuoma Ovienmhada is a doctoral student at MIT who has devoted her research to studying injustices in prisons across the country. In an op-ed for Environmental Health News, she summarized her findings and why she supports creating a new justice system. During her research, Ovienmhada found that many prisons, jails and detention centers are situated near industrial activity, toxic waste facilities, and places where wildfires are common, exposing incarcerated individuals and staff to environmental hazards such as air pollution. She recalled speaking with one woman who had been incarcerated in a prison that is situated near 15 facilities on the EPA's Toxic Release Inventory. "We were right across the street — literally — right across the street from a power plant that was just belching this sulfurous smelling stuff. I don't know what it was. And I know that I have asthma. And that was really aggravated there," she said. "There were times when we just couldn't go outside … because it wasn't just the smell you'd breathe in — it was like your lungs would … hurt." Meanwhile, outdated buildings often expose incarcerated individuals to extreme heat, Ovienmhada said, adding that funding for infrastructure updates is unlikely to make a difference. She cited interviews of formerly incarcerated people who said that such projects often were not completed. Others described how such upgrades sometimes further exacerbated their poor treatment during incarceration. For instance, one person said ultra-cooled cells at one facility were used to punish individuals. "People actually died in those conditions," the person told Ovienmhada. Ovienmhada said people in prisons, jails, and detention centers can develop respiratory and cardiovascular diseases as a consequence of exposure to such environmental hazards. "[This] can, quite literally, affect their ability to breathe, and even lead to premature death," she stated. "The fact that environmental injustice is widespread in carceral facilities reveals that the suffocation of marginalized bodies in the U.S. behind bars is in many cases by design, not an accidental byproduct." Do you worry about air pollution in your town? All the time Often Only sometimes Never Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. This is just one example of the widespread environmental challenges across the United States. For instance, Cancer Alley is an approximately 85-mile strip of Louisiana that is home to around 200 dirty energy and petrochemical operations, according to Human Rights Watch. A scholar at Keele University concluded that Black communities living in Cancer Alley are more likely to have petrochemical plants nearby and called it a "prime example of environmental racism." Ovienmhada advocates for abolishing prisons as they're currently set up and instead focusing on increasing investment in social infrastructure, though she acknowledges this may seem "idealistic" and suggests that "unrepentant or repeated harm-doers" should not have access to power that would allow them to continue their ways. She shared an example of programs that are already working in this arena. For instance, Californians United for a Responsible Budget works to decarcerate, close prisons, and invest in programs that support workforce development, affordable housing, and drug treatment programs. Across the country, people are also standing up for their communities. For example, sisters in one small town in Cancer Alley helped put a stop to the construction of a grain export facility that would have been built atop an area of cultural and historical significance. The construction would have also increased pollution, and dust from the plant could have caused respiratory problems. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
