EPA puts two NEW 'forever chemicals' on its danger list - and they're ... trends now
The Environmental Protection Agency has added two new forever chemicals to its danger list that are found in everyday products like cookware, furniture and cosmetics.
The agency has listed perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) as a hazardous substance under the 'Superfund' Act which requires industries to pay for clean-up efforts for toxins that end up in the water supply during production.
The compounds are part of a larger cluster of forever chemicals known as PFAS, which can accumulate and persist in the human body for long periods - and they have been linked to cancer and organ damage.
The measures will hold industries responsible for cleaning up and paying for the forever chemicals that seep into the soil and groundwater, which can cost tens of millions of dollars.
Forever chemicals, also called PFAS, are found in everday products like makeup, furniture and non-stick cookware that can end up in the soil and drinking water
The Environmental Protection Agency received $1 billion in funding from the Biden administration to enforce a limit of the amount of forever chemicals permitted in drinking water. Products like non-stick cooking pans contain these forever chemicals that end up in the soil and groundwater during the production process. The EPA requires the chemicals to be less than four parts per trillion
The Environmental Protection Agency received $1 billion in funding from the Biden administration to enforce a limit of the amount of forever chemicals permitted in drinking water. The EPA requires the chemicals to be less than four parts per trillion
'No one should have to worry in 2024 about whether their well water, farm produce or even clothing is contaminated with toxic chemicals, but unfortunately, that's the reality for millions of Americans,' said Lisa Frank, executive director of Environment America Research & Policy Center's Washington office.
Forever chemicals have been used since the 1940s in industry and consumer products including nonstick frying pans, water-repellent sports gear, stain-resistant rugs and cosmetics.
These compounds can easily enter the bloodstream after a person drinks water, wears certain products or eats food laced with them.
Once in the bloodstream, PFAS can lodge themselves within healthy tissue where it can begin to damage the immune system, the liver, the kidneys, and other organs.
Under the Superfund law, the PFOA and PFOS chemicals aren't banned, but if they meet or exceed certain levels in the soil and water, it is required to be reported to federal, state or tribal officials.
Forever chemicals are a byproduct of the manufacturing process, when factories that make products containing PFAS emit wastewater that goes into communities' water supply.
Other contaminants on the Superfund list include lead, asbestos, dioxin - a toxin found in herbicide production and paper bleaching, - soil bioavailability and radiation.
The EPA confirmed Friday that
