On January 10, 2022, the EPA submitted a plan for a PFAS Superfund designation to the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) when it indicated an intent to designate two legacy PFAS – PFOA and PFOS – as “hazardous substances” under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation & Liability Act (CERCLA, also known as the Superfund […]
Stephanie Feingold, Jenna Ferraro, Drew Cleary Jordan Morgan Lewis The US government took another step toward further regulation of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) on December 15 with the US Senate passing the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022 by a vote of 88-11, sending the legislation to President Joseph Biden’s desk for […]
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 […]
December 20, 2021 Contact Information EPA Press Office (press@epa.gov) WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized the Fifth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 5) to establish nationwide monitoring for 29 per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and lithium in drinking water. This action is essential to addressing the public health and environmental risks of […]
Laura Ashdown, Kelly Rondinelli, Corinne Snow, George Wilkinson Jr. Vinson & Elkins LLP EPA announced plans for two separate rulemaking processes that would expand liabilities for PFAS wastes. The first — a rulemaking process to add certain PFAS chemicals as “hazardous constituents” under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (“RCRA”) expands remedial obligations to include […]
Vinson & Elkins LLP EPA announced plans for two separate rulemaking processes that would expand liabilities for PFAS wastes. The first — a rulemaking process to add certain PFAS chemicals as “hazardous constituents” under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (“RCRA”) expands remedial obligations to include PFAS at RCRA corrective action sites and could be […]
In the Fall Regulatory Agenda issued December 10, EPA confirmed its timetable for short-term objectives in its PFAS Strategic Roadmap. The deadlines in the semi-annual agenda include finalizing this month the requirement for public water systems to monitor and report data on 29 PFAS (including certain fluorotelomers and GenX compounds), proposing the designation of PFOS […]
A great article by Catherine Kavanaugh of Plastic News examines Bekum America expanding this year to handle the high demand for extrusion blow molding machines. Bekum’s demand for blow molding machines had remained strong since the start of the pandemic when the makers of hand sanitizers, wipes, and food packaging struggled to respond to shoppers. […]
On October 18, 2021, EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan announced the agency’s PFAS Strategic Roadmap—laying out a whole-of-agency approach to addressing PFAS. The roadmap sets timelines by which EPA plans to take specific actions and commits to bolder new policies to safeguard public health, protect the environment, and hold polluters accountable. The actions described in […]
DECATUR, Ala. (AP) — 3M will pay $98.4 million to settle lawsuits over contamination from its chemical plant along the Tennessee River in north Alabama under an agreement announced Tuesday. The agreement, reached through court-ordered mediation with local government agencies, 3M and other companies, would fund both past and future cleanup work and pay for […]