WASHINGTON – The EPA’s long-anticipated proposal to regulate a new category of toxic substances in drinking water may shift the financial burden onto utilities and ratepayers, industry groups warned.
On March 14 the agency proposed regulations under the Safe Drinking Water Act that would set enforceable regulations for six per- and polyfluoroalkyl compounds. For the two most common PFAS chemicals, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS), it is proposing an enforceable limit of 4 parts per trillion, while for four others it is proposing a limit for a mix of them.
Used in a wide array of industrial applications – including firefighting foam, nonstick cookware and waterproof coatings – PFAS have been referred to as “forever chemicals” for their chemical structure which allows them to persist in both the human body and the environment. Exposure to PFAS has been linked to a number of adverse health outcomes including immune system dysfunction, impaired child development and cancer, according to the National Institutes of Health.
