US moves to exempt companies from reporting harmful chemical releases

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jun/24/epa-pfas-chemical-releases-exemption-us


Emily Holden in Washington
Wed 24 Jun 2020 06.30 EDT


Federal regulators are crafting an exemption for polluters releasing harmful perfluorinated chemicals (PFAS) into the environment in a way that environmental advocates say circumvents a new law meant to address widespread contamination.

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Dubbed ‘forever chemicals,’ PFAS have been found in drinking water around the country. They are used in weatherproof fabrics, nonstick cookware and firefighting foam, and they are linked with cancer, low infant birth weights, immune issues and thyroid disruptions.

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Specifically, lawmakers said manufacturers should be required to report to the government if they release 100 pounds or more of the chemicals annually into a waterway. But EPA’s new regulation would allow them to bypass that requirement, as long as no single PFAS chemical in a mixture released exceeded 1% of the total.

EPA is also skipping the usual step of allowing the public to comment before finalizing the rule, arguing that because the rule is needed to comply with an act of Congress, EPA “has no discretion as to the outcome”.

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“Because these are forever chemicals … we’re living with what grandma’s generation used and we just keep adding to it,” Donovan said. “We have been overexposed for so many decades that we can’t afford another drop.”