3M announces progress on PFAS initiatives and actions
19 Mar 2020 | Business's Wire (StreetInsider.com)
3M has launched a research clearinghouse webpage and is releasing previously unavailable PFAS reference standards.
Groups bring suit over secret approval process for PFAS chemicals
18 Mar 2020 | Courthouse News Service
In approving these chemicals without restriction, the EPA is certifying that the substances are not likely to pose an unreasonable risk.
Foam exposure committee leading PFAS research
18 Mar 2020 | Firehouse.com
The mission of the committee is to reduce firefighter/first responder exposures to PFAS chemicals used in firefighting foams in order to protect their health and lives.
N.C. State receives $7.4 million grant to establish PFAS research center
18 Mar 2020 | NC Health News
The center will expand on existing studies, including human exposure to PFAS in Wilmington and the Fayetteville area, and take a deeper look into getting rid of the chemicals.
Military sees surge in sites with 'forever chemical' contamination
17 Mar 2020 | The Hill
The military now has at least 651 sites that may have been contaminated with cancer-linked “forever chemicals,” a more than 50 percent jump from its last tally.
Dane County, Madison Water Utility sued for withholding PFAS records
17 Mar 2020 | Wisconsin State Journal
Decades of training with firefighting foam at the Dane County Regional Airport have led to PFAS in soil and groundwater.
UC Riverside research finds possible end to forever chemicals
16 Mar 2020 | WaterWorld
Using excess electrons could help break the strong carbon-fluorine bonds of PFAS in water, leaving by-products that might even accelerate the process. The reaction also formed a hydrogen fluoride molecule. Whether or not these shortchain molecules are carcinogens at typical concentrations in water has not yet been determined.
Rash of lawsuits intensify concerns of 3M's liabilities over PFAS chemicals
13 Mar 2020 | Star Tribune
A rash of recent lawsuits against 3M have intensified concerns that it could face massive legal and cleanup costs over a class of chemicals called PFAS.
How DuPont may avoid paying to clean up a toxic 'forever chemical'
13 Mar 2020 | NBC News
Robin Andrews of Pedricktown, New Jersey, has been fighting an autoimmune disease and thyroid condition for the past three years, suffering severe dental problems, hair loss and other symptoms. All, she believes, are the result of exposure to drinking water tainted by a group of chemicals called PFAS, used widely for decades in products like Teflon pans, stain-resistant carpets, even cosmetics.
$20 billion bill proposed to clean up PFAS water contamination nationally
12 Mar 2020 | Union Leader
“While enforceable drinking water, clean water standards and the designation of the most harmful PFAS under the Superfund law are all urgently needed measures to address widespread contamination near military installations or other sites, communities will continue to need funding to remediate contamination and keep drinking water clean for years to come,” Carper said in a statement.
New federal law requires PFAS users to report to EPA
11 Mar 2020 | JDSupra
Facilities that manufacture, process, or otherwise annually use more than 100 lbs of any listed PFAS must submit annual reports to EPA. EPA is authorized to lower reporting thresholds in the future. The first reports for calendar year 2020 are due July 1, 2021.
Landmark legal settlement as government pays $212m to victims of toxic contamination
11 Mar 2020 | The Sydney Morning Herald
The federal government will pay out $212.5 million to settle three class actions launched by victims of toxic firefighting contamination across Australia.
Two Senate bills target chemicals found in firefighting foam
9 Mar 2020 | California Globe
Two bills that call for the partial banning and water testing of chemicals called perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) were introduced to the Californian Senate.
Indiana-based companies in charge of incinerating military’s PFAS firefighting foam stockpiles
9 Mar 2020 | Indiana Environmental Reporter
Two Indiana-based hazardous waste treatment companies are playing a leading role nationally in the incineration of the U.S. military’s stockpiles of toxic firefighting foam and have landed in the middle of a legal battle.
U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin to highlight PFAS legislation at Oakland County forum
5 Mar 2020 | The Oakland Press
The Test Your Well Water Act would require the U.S. EPA to create an online tool on it's website for Americans with private wells to find resources to test their drinking water and understand what those results mean.