‘I applaud the EPA’: agency launches formal review of five toxic chemicals

An EPA worker looks for signs of fish and also agitates the water to check for chemicals that have settled at the bottom following the train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, on 20 February 2023. Photograph: Michael Swensen/Getty Images

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is launching a formal review of five highly toxic plastic chemicals, including vinyl chloride, the notorious compound at the center of the East Palestine, Ohio, train wreck fire. The move could lead to strong limits or bans on the substances.

Vinyl chloride is most commonly used in PVC pipe and packaging production, but is also cancerous and highly flammable. For about 50 years, the federal government has considered limits on the substance, but industry has thwarted most regulatory efforts, hidden the substances’ risks and is already mobilizing against the new review.