Featured-PFAS

California Bill Would Lock-In Biden-EPA Drinking Water PFAS Standards

A California lawmaker is introducing a bill to require the state water board to advance emergency rules to lock-in the Biden-EPA’s stringent regulatory limits for six PFAS in drinking water, mainly in response to President Donald Trump’s expected repeal of the standards, which are facing lawsuits from chemical industry and water utility groups. “Given the developments in Washington, given the threat to public health and to public safety that these chemicals pose, the science here is absolutely clear -- we...

Judges Question If Vermont Gave 3M Enough Data To Remove PFAS Suit

A panel of appellate judges is questioning whether Vermont gave 3M enough information for the company to determine whether it could remove the state’s PFAS contamination suit to federal court, suggesting the state placed too heavy a burden on the company when it informed it of its status as a military contractor eligible for federal court review. During Feb. 18 oral argument in State of Vermont v. 3M Company , the judges from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the...

Lawmakers Renew Efforts To Offer Superfund Relief From PFAS Liability

Lawmakers are initiating renewed efforts to provide Superfund liability relief to so-called passive receivers of PFAS contamination, with House members reintroducing legislation to offer targeted protections to water utilities while Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) is reiterating her concerns over liability for a variety of sectors and committing to work with the House on the issue. Lummis, who sits on the Senate Environment & Public Works (EPW) Committee, recently expressed continued concerns over Superfund liability for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)...

MDL Judge Indicates Some PFAS Tort Claims Expected To Pass Early Hurdle

The federal judge overseeing PFAS multidistrict litigation (MDL) indicated during recent oral argument that he plans to reject the Defense Department’s (DOD) request to use a federal tort law exemption to dismiss tort claims at an Air Force base that is a test case for other DOD sites, although he signaled plaintiffs may be blocked from intervening in ongoing DOD Superfund cleanups. Judge Richard Gergel of the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina held oral argument Feb...

Connecticut Weighs Fluoropolymer Exemption In PFAS Cookware Ban

Connecticut lawmakers are weighing whether the state’s upcoming ban on PFAS-containing cookware should exempt those containing fluoropolymers, which are often used in nonstick coatings, reigniting a debate on the varying toxicities of PFAS compounds as more states are expected to consider prohibitions on PFAS in products. The issue will be at the forefront of a Feb. 19 public hearing on a draft exemption , sponsored by state Sen. Rick Lopes (D-CT) who also chairs the General Assembly’s Joint Environment Committee,...

Judge Attempts To Smooth Path For CERCLA Claims Under PFAS MDL

The federal judge overseeing PFAS multidistrict litigation (MDL) is attempting to smooth the way for plaintiffs to add Superfund law claims to their already pending cases while preventing technical issues over the cleanup process from getting in the way of making determinations on Superfund liability under those claims. Judge Richard Gergel of the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina told plaintiffs during a Feb. 7 status conference that he is willing to sign off on an unopposed...

New York, New Mexico Lawmakers Introduce Bills To Tackle PFAS Pollution

Two Democratic states have introduced bills targeting PFAS contamination, from prohibiting the chemicals in consumer products to regulating them as toxic air pollutants, highlighting how combating PFAS continues to be a priority for states, especially amid fears the Trump administration will pursue a deregulatory federal agenda. The bills also come as Safer States, an alliance of environmental organizations, in its annual policy analysis said at least 29 states are expected to consider policies in 2025 to address per- and polyfluoroalkyl...

EPA Asks Court To Stay Litigation Challenging Drinking Water PFAS Rule

EPA is asking a federal appellate court to pause litigation brought by drinking water utilities and the chemical industry contesting the agency’s landmark PFAS drinking water rule, in order to give the Trump administration time to examine the rule -- which set strict limits on six PFAS in drinking water. In a Feb. 7 motion submitted to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in American Water Works Association (AWWA), et al. v. EPA , the...

Analysis Finds 29 States Expected To Address PFAS Contamination In 2025

At least 29 states are expected to consider policies in 2025 to address PFAS contamination, according to an analysis from an alliance of environmental organizations, including banning PFAS in products, identifying safer alternatives, and setting drinking water limits for PFAS, signaling continued state leadership even as federal action under the Trump EPA is uncertain. Such expectations around states addressing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination comes amid fears the Trump administration will roll back Biden-era regulations, including the drinking water...

NACWA Urges EPA To Walk-Back Biden-Era Call For Local PFAS Limits

A group that represents publicly owned treatment works (POTWs) is urging EPA to walk-back calls from the Biden administration urging utilities and others to launch efforts to create local pretreatment programs to address PFAS from upstream sources, at least until the agency crafts water quality policies needed for such measures. “Utilities must not be held responsible for developing local limits for pervasive chemicals such as PFAS, especially when water quality standards do not yet exist for these chemicals and POTWs...

Judge Rejects Plaintiffs’ Argument On CWA Waiver Of Immunity In PFAS MDL

The federal judge overseeing multidistrict litigation (MDL) addressing contamination from PFAS in firefighting foam has effectively dismissed plaintiffs’ arguments that the Clean Water Act (CWA) waives the Defense Department’s (DOD) immunity to state-law water pollution claims and Federal Tort Claims Act trespass claims. In a Jan. 30 order , Judge Richard Gergel of the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina also effectively rejected plaintiffs’ assertion that the Federal Tort Claims Act’s (FTCA) Discretionary Function Exemption (DFE) was...

Dischargers Say Trump’s Rule Freeze Blocks Draft CWA PFAS Methods Rule

Citing the Trump administration’s regulatory freeze, industry, municipal and other dischargers are urging EPA to withdraw a Biden-era proposal establishing analytical methods for assessing PFAS under the Clean Water Act (CWA), potentially delaying the listing of the methods that, once final, are expected to drive states to require PFAS monitoring in permits. In comments filed late last month, two coalitions representing a range of industry, municipal and agricultural groups say the agency should withdraw the proposed CWA Methods Update Rule...

EPA Grants Industry Call To Extend Comment Period On Contested MSGP

At the request of multiple industry groups, the Trump EPA has extended for 60 days the public comment period on a contested Biden-era proposal revising the agency’s multi-sector general permit (MSGP) for industrial stormwater, which includes first-time PFAS monitoring requirements, clearing the way for the new administration to revisit the permit. According to a Federal Register notice scheduled to be published Feb. 3, EPA is extending the comment deadline by 60 days from the date of publication -- which...

States, Industry Urge EPA To Reconsider Studying PFAS ELGs For Oil Sector

The oil and gas industry and key state regulators are urging the Trump EPA to reconsider a Biden-era plan to study whether a subset of the sector, as well as certain wastewater plants, should be subject to PFAS effluent limits, questioning the agency’s prioritization of the sector as well as the need for technology-based limits. “Considering the high numerical (low priority) ranking of the Oil and Gas Extraction Category, we suggest that being ranked number 57 in priority of concern...

Lawmakers Offer Bill To Compensate DOD Firefighters Exposed To PFAS

Two members of the bipartisan Congressional PFAS Task Force -- one Democrat and one Republican -- have introduced legislation that would require the Defense Department (DOD) to create a compensation fund for military firefighters who have been exposed to PFAS, with environmentalists and a firefighter labor union backing the bill. Reps. Marilyn Strickland (D-WA) and Michael Lawler (R-NY) Jan. 23 introduced H.R. 705 , the Compensation Fund for Military Firefighters Exposed to PFAS Act, which would compensate firefighters exposed to...

Citizens Sue FDA For Inaction On Petition Seeking PFAS Tolerance Levels

An Arizona citizen group and others are suing the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) for failing to act on their 2023 petition seeking temporary tolerance levels for residues of more than two dozen PFAS in various foods such as lettuce, blueberries, milk and eggs, arguing the agency has failed to act within a reasonable timeframe. “Defendants’ delay is unreasonable because by not acting, PFAS adulterated foods are left unchecked in the marketplace, and public health is at risk, in violation...

Air Force Renews Bid To Keep PFAS Waste-Permit Test Suit In Federal Court

The Air Force is renewing its efforts to ensure federal courts have jurisdiction over its novel case contesting New Mexico’s authority to regulate PFAS in a waste permit, a suit that tests whether federal law waiving sovereign immunity in waste cases eliminates federal courts’ jurisdiction or whether state and federal courts have concurrent jurisdiction. At issue is the service’s long-running challenge to New Mexico’s first-time effort to regulate per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the waste permit for Cannon Air...

EPA Guide Pushes Use Of Site-Specific PFAS Limits In NPDES Permits

Departing Biden officials earlier this month issued guidance for how states can add site-specific, technology-based effluent limits for PFAS to Clean Water Act (CWA) discharge permits, bolstering environmentalists’ calls for states to set such limits after the Trump EPA withdrew a stalled plan setting PFAS effluent guidelines for the chemical sector. EPA quietly issued the short how-to guide in the form of a fact sheet this month, saying it “provides information on implementing case-by-case technology-based effluent limitations for PFAS, but...

Intervenors Defend PFAS Water Rule Amid Uncertain Trump EPA Position

Environmentalist-intervenors are defending the Biden EPA’s landmark rule setting strict drinking water limits for six PFAS, endorsing and supplementing the agency’s earlier defense amid uncertainty over how the Trump administration will handle industry’s pending challenge. EPA’s National Primary Drinking Water Regulation (NPDWR) for six per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) “reflects rational, well-supported EPA decisions that are consistent with the best available science and the best reading of the Safe Drinking Water Act [(SDWA)],” the environmentalist-intervenors say in a Jan. 17...

Study Links Cancer To PFAS In Drinking Water, Urges Stricter Regulation

A first-of-its-kind study finds communities exposed to PFAS-contaminated drinking water experience up to 33 percent higher incidence of certain cancers, emphasizing the importance of monitoring and mitigating health risks linked to PFAS from drinking water and underscoring the value of EPA’s new drinking water standards for six PFAS. “Certain PFAS that were less studied need to be monitored more, and regulators need to think about other PFAS that may not be strictly regulated yet,” said University of Southern California (USC)...

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