The Biden administration announced it will now require additional testing on some "forever chemicals," but advocates who have been pushing for further regulation are decrying the terms of the announcement as inadequate.
A petition from North Carolina environmental groups is calling for the EPA to conduct further studies on 54 forever chemicals. In a lengthy response to the petition, the EPA said, according to The Hill, "it would require companies to conduct tests on seven of the chemicals the groups identified."
The forever chemicals, PFAS, or, or perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, have been linked to an assortment of health issues, including cancers.
"EPA says they're granting the petition. I think if they denied the petition we would basically be getting the same thing. … 90-plus percent of what we asked for we're not getting," said Bob Sussman, the lawyer representing the environmental groups and a former EPA official.
One of the environmental advocates, La'Meshia Whittington of the NC Black Alliance, said, "for decades, our communities have suffered silently from PFAS contaminated water. All the while, polluting corporations have continued to profit from our pain."
"Our dedicated team of community advocates, legal counsel, and scientists have provided EPA with the tools to clearly and swiftly act to save our communities. We are deeply disappointed that the Biden EPA chose not to use these tools in its response to our petition," she added.
The environmental advocates' petition alleges that among the 54 forever chemicals it cites, all can be said to be manufactured at a company called Chemours at a site in Fayetteville, North Carolina.
When pressed for a response, Chemours spokeswoman Cassie Olszewski said that the company supports "national, industry-wide PFAS-related regulatory and testing requirements that are data-driven and based on the best available science."
"In this regard," Olszewski added, "the EPA's National PFAS Testing Strategy and participation of all manufacturers is important to a complete, holistic evaluation of PFAS compounds. As this work progresses, Chemours remains committed to delivering essential and responsible chemistry in every community where we operate."
Further, the Biden administration maintained that the testing that is being done is a step in the right direction.
"By taking action on this petition, EPA will have a better understanding of the risks from PFAS pollution so we can do more to protect people. This data will also help us identify the sources of pollution so we can hold those accountable for endangering the public," EPA Administrator Michael Regan said in a statement.
The "EPA," Regan added, "is fully committed to addressing this longstanding pollution challenge, and today we take another critical step forward to protect the water, air, and land we all depend on."
According to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention fact sheet, four PFAS were found "in the serum of nearly all of the people tested. This indicates widespread exposure to these PFAS in the U.S. population."
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