"EPA Expands Testing Of ‘Forever Chemicals’ In Drinking Water"

"EPA is expanding testing efforts for "forever chemicals" in the nation’s drinking water systems.

Administrator Michael Regan said in an announcement today that the agency has finalized a rule establishing drinking water monitoring for 29 per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances and lithium. One of the PFAS is HFPO-DA, better known as GenX, a chemical infamous for contaminating drinking water in North Carolina when Regan ran the state’s environment agency.

In a statement, Regan emphasized EPA’s work on PFAS and pointed to the new rule as further demonstration that the Biden administration is prioritizing a crackdown on the chemicals.

“At EPA, we are advancing the science and the monitoring that are necessary to protect all communities from PFAS,” he said. “With the data provided by this rule, EPA will be able to develop better regulations while the agency, states, and our local partners will be able to make protective public health decisions that are grounded in science.”"

E.A. Crunden reports for E&E News December 20, 2021.

Source: E&E News, 12/21/2021