Quick Summary:
• The Trump administration withdrew a proposed EPA rule to limit PFAS discharges into industrial wastewater, reversing efforts to regulate the toxic “forever chemicals.”
• Environmental advocates like Melanie Benesh warn the decision delays critical federal standards and emboldens polluters to continue contaminating water supplies.
• PFAS chemicals, linked to cancers, immune suppression, and developmental harm, affect millions of Americans through contaminated water, food, and household products.
• Under the Biden administration, the EPA had designated certain PFAS chemicals as hazardous substances and proposed enforceable drinking water limits to protect public health.
• Trump’s withdrawal coincides with executive orders aimed at deregulating environmental protections, including withdrawing from the Paris Climate Agreement and rolling back renewable energy initiatives.
• Critics, including NRDC president Manish Bapna, argue that these actions prioritize corporate interests over public health and undermine U.S. climate leadership.
• The decision has left state regulators and environmental groups scrambling to address PFAS contamination without federal guidance.
In a stunning reversal of environmental progress, President Donald Trump’s administration has withdrawn a Biden-era proposal to limit the discharge of toxic PFAS chemicals, often referred to as “forever chemicals,” into industrial wastewater. This decision, made during the first week of Trump’s second term, represents a significant setback for public health and environmental protections, prioritizing corporate profits over the well-being of millions of Americans.
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a class of thousands of human-made chemicals found in industrial processes, household products, food packaging, and even drinking water. PFAS are known for their resistance to breaking down in the environment, earning them the nickname “forever chemicals.” Exposure to PFAS has been linked to a range of serious health issues, including certain cancers, immune suppression, thyroid disease, and developmental harm.
An analysis by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) revealed that an estimated 143 million Americans are exposed to PFAS through tap water. The contamination is so widespread that trace amounts of PFAS are found in nearly everyone’s blood. Melanie Benesh, vice president for government affairs at the EWG, called the Trump administration’s decision to withdraw the proposed PFAS regulations a “devastating setback,” stating: “This move not only delays establishing critical federal standards but also sends a dangerous message giving polluters a green light to continue poisoning our water and communities without fear of consequence.”
Under the Biden administration, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had taken historic steps to address the PFAS crisis. These efforts included:
• Establishing the first-ever enforceable limits for PFAS in drinking water.
• Classifying two common PFAS chemicals, PFOA and PFOS, as hazardous substances under the Superfund law.
• Allocating $9 billion in federal funding to help utilities upgrade water treatment facilities and remove PFAS from the water supply.
However, the Trump administration has moved swiftly to dismantle these advancements. The EPA’s proposed rule, which would have set federal discharge limits on PFAS in industrial wastewater, was withdrawn just days after the new administration took office. The rule was initially designed to regulate discharges from about 13 facilities, but the broader implications of PFAS contamination affect nearly 30,000 industrial sites nationwide, according to the EWG.
The withdrawal of the PFAS discharge rule is part of a broader wave of environmental policy reversals under Trump. The new administration has issued executive orders to withdraw the United States from the Paris Climate Agreement, open Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas drilling, and suspend key regulations under the Endangered Species Act.
“There is no energy emergency. There is a climate emergency,” Manish Bapna, president and CEO of the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), said in response to these actions. “There’s a whiff of American oligarchy in actions meant to further enrich billionaire oil and gas donors at the people’s expense.”
The Trump administration’s ties to the chemical industry have raised concerns about the motivations behind these rollbacks. Nancy Beck, a former lobbyist for the pro-industry American Chemistry Council, has been appointed to a key EPA position overseeing chemical safety. Beck previously worked to weaken PFAS regulations during Trump’s first term.
The chemical industry has also lobbied to delay the implementation of new PFAS drinking water limits, despite the Biden administration’s five-year compliance window and billions in federal funding for technological upgrades. These delays leave state regulators and local communities in limbo, unable to implement effective monitoring and treatment plans.
Environmental advocates warn that the withdrawal of PFAS regulations will have dire consequences for public health, particularly in marginalized communities already disproportionately affected by environmental pollution. A study of EPA data from 2013 to 2015 found that unregulated industrial chemicals like PFAS were detected in water systems serving 97 million people, with Black and Hispanic populations at particularly high risk for exposure.
“The Trump administration’s refusal to act now puts even more lives at risk, leaving American communities to fend for themselves as polluters continue their unchecked discharges of toxic PFAS into our water,” Benesh said.
Advocates are calling for sustained public pressure and state-led initiatives to counteract federal inaction. Without decisive action, the burden of addressing the PFAS crisis will fall on local governments and vulnerable populations, leaving millions of Americans exposed to toxic chemicals with devastating health consequences.
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