CEH Responds to Trump EPA Withdrawal of PFAS Effluent Limits
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WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Trump Environmental Protection Agency recently withdrew a pending Biden administration plan that would have protected public health by setting discharge limits on toxic PFAS or “forever chemicals.” PFAS are a class of about 15,000 chemicals typically used to make products that resist water, stains, and heat. They are called “forever chemicals” because they do not naturally break down, and can accumulate in humans and the environment. The chemicals are linked to cancer, kidney disease, liver problems, immune disorders, birth defects and other serious health problems.
CEH’s Chief Executive Officer Kizzy Charles-Guzman gave this statement:
“The recent action by the Trump administration to withdraw the proposal on PFAS effluent limits is a major blow in the fight against ‘forever chemicals’ that pollute our drinking water. PFAS contamination is an urgent public health crisis, and people who live near PFAS-manufacturing facilities and other industrial facilities that use and discharge PFAS have lived with the health consequences of this pollution for decades.
“This is exactly why we sued six facilities across California for discharging PFAS into groundwater, and together with groups in North Carolina, petitioned and sued the EPA to require The Chemours Company to fund comprehensive health and environmental effects testing on 54 PFAS manufactured at its production facility in Fayetteville. Without strong federal action on PFAS discharges, the fight will be harder, but CEH remains committed to holding government agencies accountable to protect all Americans as we work toward a cleaner, healthier, safer world.”
Learn more about PFAS in California groundwater.
The Center for Environmental Health (CEH) is a 28-year-old organization leading the nationwide effort to protect people from toxic chemicals to achieve a cleaner, safer, healthier world.