Resisting EPA, DOD Chief Defends Eased PFAS Groundwater Cleanup Level

Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan is strongly defending his department's stance that the acceptable risk level for remediating groundwater contaminated with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) should be much weaker than the 70 parts-per-trillion (ppt) level that EPA favors, raising doubts that officials will be able to quickly issue a long-promised policy. In an April 10 letter to Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), first obtained by Inside EPA , Shanahan denies the Defense Department (DOD) is “seeking to weaken” EPA's preferred...