US EPA nominee stresses environmental justice and PFAS control

By Cheryl Hogue | Chemical & Engineering News | February 4, 2021

Read the full article by Cheryl Hogue (Chemical & Engineering News)

“Ensuring environmental justice and controlling releases of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are priorities for Michael S. Regan, President Joe Biden’s pick to run the US Environmental Protection Agency.

Regan said at his Feb. 3 confirmation hearing that he plans to ‘restructure’ the EPA and place an environmental justice official in each of the agency’s regulatory offices—three focused separately on air, water, and land pollution plus one centered on chemical safety. He told the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, which held the hearing, that he would seek additional funding for these new positions and for an environmental justice adviser to the EPA administrator.

Regan also discussed PFAS, a group of environmentally persistent synthetic chemicals, some of which are highly toxic, that are commonly used for nonstick and water-repellant coatings. Since 2017, in his job leading the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality, Regan has grappled with PFAS-tainted drinking water affecting hundreds of thousands of people the state. He’s also overseen PFAS cleanup by chemical maker Chemours, the source of much of that pollution…”

This content provided by the PFAS Project.