Courtney Bourgoin, courtney.bourgoin@sierraclub.org
Washington, DC-- Today, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Andrew Wheeler released an update on the agency’s per and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) Action Plan. In the update, the agency said it would begin the process to set a legal limit on the amount of PFAS allowed in drinking water. The process of completing an enforceable water standard could take up to ten years. In addition, the announcement only mentions implementing these safeguards on two of the thousands of chemicals in the PFAS family. The agency released its full Action Plan February. Environmental and public health groups have overwhelmingly called the plan too slow and weak.
In response to the announcement, Sonya Lunder, Senior Toxics Policy Advisor at the Sierra Club released the following statement:
“We can’t wait another ten minutes, let alone ten years, for EPA to ban PFAS in household products and keep them out of our water supply. EPA is wasting its time. It should end the unnecessary use of PFAS today, and stop allowing contamination of our food and water.”
EPA’s announcement is most notable for what it leaves out. Namely, the Trump administration has ignored its obligation to protect people and the environment by:
- Listing PFAS as Hazardous Substances to prompt clean up of contaminated military and industrial sites;
- Adding PFAS to the Clean Water Act to end the legal emissions of the chemicals into water supplies;
- Restricting the application of contaminated wastewater biosolids on agricultural fields and dairylands;
- Reviewing and restrict unnecessarily and harmful uses in consumer products;
- Regulating PFAS disposal to ensure it is safely destroyed.
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3.5 million members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.