PFAS POLICY

House Panel Strengthens DOD Policies On PFAS Cleanups, Procurement

The House Armed Services Committee has approved additional restrictions on the Defense Department’s (DOD) purchasing of certain products containing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), while requiring the Pentagon to comply with the most stringent state or federal levels for PFAS cleanups, as part of amendments to the fiscal year 2023 defense authorization act. During a June 22 markup, the committee approved by voice vote two PFAS-related amendments offered by Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), after overcoming objections by Rep. Mike Waltz...

States Take Wait-And-See Approach On EPA’s PFAS Health Advisories

States are taking a wait-and-see approach in response to EPA’s issuance of strict health advisory levels (HALs) for four per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in drinking water, with several key states indicating they will assess drinking water systems’ compliance with the new levels but signaling they are not likely to quickly change their regulatory standards. Only North Carolina officials, who are in the midst of writing first-time drinking water standards, say they will consider EPA’s new guidance as they proceed...

EPA Sets New Deadlines For Key Rules As Officials Await High Court Rulings

EPA has set new deadlines for two key rulemakings -- governing greenhouse gases from power plants and the reach of the Clean Water Act -- as officials await major rulings from the Supreme Court that could force the agency to narrow any upcoming proposals, according to the Biden administration’s just-released Spring Unified Agenda. In addition, the agenda includes new rulemaking plans in several programs, including new limits on chemicals under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), a new rule that...

EPA Tests Find High Destruction Levels Of PFAS Via Hydrothermal Method

WILMINGTON, NC -- Early EPA findings show that a hydrothermal treatment method destroyed more than 99 percent of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in wastewater, highlighting the potential benefits of the method, an EPA researcher says, as the agency and others grapple with a lack of destruction technologies. Max Krause, an environmental engineer in EPA’s Office of Research & Development, reviewed findings from EPA’s evaluations of supercritical oxidation (SCWO), a hydrothermal destruction method, to destroy PFAS. The agency for the...

House Panel Floats $11.5 Billion For EPA In FY23, Just Below Request

House appropriators have unveiled a bill that would fund EPA at $11.5 billion overall in fiscal year 2023, slightly lower than what the Biden administration is seeking, while boosting funding for high-profile programs including water infrastructure, regional waterbodies and Superfund. The total overall funding level in draft appropriations bill , which will be marked up June 21 by the House Appropriations Committee’s Interior, Environment and Related Agencies Subcommittee, is slightly less than the $11.9 billion the agency has requested but...

Chemours Eyes Suit Targeting Science Basis For EPA’s GenX Advisory

Chemical maker Chemours is considering legal action against EPA after the agency set a tough new drinking water advisory for the per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) known as GenX, which the company produces, after the agency also denied its data quality petition challenging the risk assessment on which the advisory is based. “The agency disregarded relevant data and issued a health advisory contrary to the agency's own standards and this administration’s commitment to scientific integrity,” says Chemours in a statement...

EPA Downplays Fears Over PFAS Health Limits Set Below Detection Levels

WILMINGTON, NC -- EPA’s top water official is downplaying concerns that the agency’s just-announced interim drinking water health advisory levels (HALs) for the two most studied per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are set at levels below what can currently be detected, which critics say will make it difficult for utilities to demonstrate compliance. Responding to questions from reporters here, Radhika Fox, assistant administrator for EPA’s water office, stressed June 15 that HALs are not detection levels and says the agency...

EPA Sets Strict PFAS Advisories, Citing Health Harms At Levels ‘Near Zero’

EPA has released long-awaited drinking water health advisory levels for four closely watched per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), including revised interim targets for the chemicals known as PFOA and PFOS that are much more stringent than Obama-era limits, noting that more recent research has found human health risks at concentrations “near zero.” Speaking to reporters ahead of the formal announcement, a senior administration official said EPA is setting advisory levels for PFOA of 0.004 parts per trillion (ppt) and 0.02...

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