Earthjustice

April 19, 2024

EPA moves to make polluters foot the bill for PFAS cleanup

By Shannon Kelleher

US regulators on Friday finalized a rule designating two widespread PFAS chemicals as hazardous substances, a step they say will ensure polluters pay to clean up contamination and reduce Americans’ exposure to the toxic chemicals.

Under the federal Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), or Superfund law, the rule will require leaks and spills of these per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) to be immediately reported and will enable investigation and cleanup of the chemicals.

The finalized rule “enables the agency to use one of its strongest enforcement tools to compel polluters to pay for or conduct investigations and cleanup, rather than taxpayers,” said the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in a press release. “Designation is especially important as delay in addressing contamination allows PFOA and PFOS more time to migrate in water and soil, worsening existing contamination.”

“This is great news for the many communities grappling with PFAS contamination – many of which are also low income and communities of color,” said Tracey Woodruff, an environmental health researcher at the University of California, San Francisco and a former EPA senior scientist.

The move comes days after the EPA announced the nation’s first legally enforceable drinking water limits for the same chemicals, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS), along with four other PFAS.

So-called “forever chemicals,” which do not break down naturally, have been used for decades in consumer products ranging from nonstick pans to waterproof clothes and stain resistant carpet. Exposure to PFAS has been linked to cancers, liver and heart problems, and immune and developmental damage in children, according to the EPA. The chemicals are found in the blood of almost all Americans.

April 9, 2024

In “crucial step”, EPA finalizes rule to reduce cancerous chemical plant emissions

By Carey Gillam

More than 200 US chemical plants face new requirements that should slash toxic air pollution and reduce cancer risks for hundreds of thousands of people living near the facilities, officials said on Tuesday.

The action formalizes a hotly debated proposal by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to cut out over 6,000 tons of toxic air pollution annually. The agency is taking specific aim at emissions of ethylene oxide (EtO), which is used in the production of many products and for sterilization of medical equipment, and chloroprene, used to make synthetic rubber.

Most of the impact would be seen in plants in Texas and Louisiana, as well as in the Ohio River Valley, in communities that have become notorious for high rates of cancer. People living near a chloroprene plant in St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana, face a cancer risk 50 times higher than the national average, for instance. The community has been dubbed “Cancer Alley.”

“This final rule delivers on EPA’s commitment to protecting public health for all, especially communities historically overburdened by pollution,” EPA Administrator Michael Regan said in a press conference.

An EPA analysis shows that once the final rule is implemented, “no one will again face elevated cancer risks from EtO or chloroprene emissions from the equipment and processes covered by this rule,” Regan said. He said agency actions would cut the cancer risk for people living near the plants by 96%.

The move is part of a “government-wide commitment to ending cancer as we know it,” he said.

March 26, 2024

Toxic vinyl chloride accidents happen once every five days, report finds

By Dana Drugmand

Accidental releases of toxic vinyl chloride have occurred in the United States once every five days, on average, since 2010, according to a new report that highlights the extent to which communities and chemical plant workers are exposed to the known carcinogen.

The findings add to a growing body of evidence on the frequency of hazardous chemical accidents, including a 2023 report that found such incidents occur in the US almost daily.

Environmental, public health and community advocates have been calling on the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to ban vinyl chloride following a February 2023 train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, which resulted in a “controlled” combustion of vinyl chloride in several rail cars that exposed residents to the chemical.

The report, produced by Material Research L3C on behalf of the environmental groups Beyond Plastics and Earthjustice, is intended to help inform the EPA as it takes steps towards conducting a risk assessment of vinyl chloride, along with four other toxic chemicals, a move the agency announced in December. The review, conducted under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), would be the first step towards considering a potential ban on vinyl chloride or additional restrictions to help protect public health and the environment from exposure to the chemical.

In public comments to the EPA, the groups Beyond Plastics, Earthjustice, and Toxic-Free Future urged the agency to quickly move to designate vinyl chloride as a “high priority substance” so that it can begin the risk evaluation.

December 20, 2023

EPA scores enforcement wins, losses in 2023; announces funding for vulnerable communities

By Shannon Kelleher

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) scored both wins and losses in its enforcement of environmental laws for 2023, stepping up fines for polluters and on-site inspections but cleaning up fewer pollutants than it has in a decade, according to the agency’s annual enforcement and compliance report.

The agency said Monday that it had required polluters to pay more than $704 million in fines, penalties, and restitutions this year, a tally significantly higher than in 2022. However, the agency’s enforcement actions only led facilities to reduce, treat or eliminate about 74 million pounds of pollutants – about 450 million pounds less than in 2015, and the smallest amount in at least a decade.

The EPA said a focus of its work was in communities facing environmental justice concerns; the agency conducted 60% of its on-site inspections in 2023 in such communities, surpassing a goal it had set to achieve by 2026.

“While our work is not complete, EPA’s revitalized enforcement program is making a positive difference in communities across America, particularly for people living in underserved and overburdened communities that for too long have borne the brunt of pollution,” David Uhlmann, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, said in a press release.

In other high points for the year, the agency said its public water system inspections resulted in 150 cases to correct violations – a more than 300% increase over the average for the last decade, the agency said.

And, after losing about 950 jobs following a decade of budget cuts, the agency is now hiring about 300 new positions to boost its enforcement program, the EPA said.

“We’re pleased to see the Environmental Protection Agency staffing up and ramping up enforcement efforts to hold polluters accountable and protect some of our nation’s most vulnerable communities,” said Coby Dolan, the legislative director of the Access to Justice Program at the nonprofit Earthjustice.

The agency needs to do more, however, to address disparate harms faced by frontline communities burdened by pollution, he said.

October 6, 2023

Puerto Rico’s natural gas buildout may harm those it claims to help

By Shannon Kelleher

Since 1999, Lissie Aviles, a Catholic nun, has lived in a convent in Cataño, Puerto Rico, a tiny town that borders the Bay of San Juan. The area is home to the world’s largest rum distillery, a Bacardi factory dubbed the “Cathedral of Rum.” Just across the bay, millions of tourists – many from the US mainland – flock to visit Old San Juan’s beaches and historical sites each year.

Cataño is known both as the smallest municipality on the island and as “the town that refused to die,” after it succeeded in fending off an early twentieth-century effort to merge the city with the inland community of Bayamón. The challenges for Cataño residents have persisted — after Hurricane Maria devastated the island in 2017, about 60% of Cataño residents were left homeless. Today, about 46% of the population lives below the poverty line in a US territory lacking full political representation and weighed down by a long legacy of colonization.

Aviles spends much of her time training faith educators in nearby parishes. But in recent years, her work has taken on an additional focus – defending local residents against harmful impacts tied to the island’s intensifying focus on expanding access to liquified natural gas (LNG).

The federal government has earmarked billions of dollars to help stabilize the island’s hurricane-rattled power system, including funding temporary generators powered by natural gas. Additionally, the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has approved a project to dredge the San Juan Bay beginning in January, allowing the nearby LNG terminal to receive ships carrying six times more LNG than current tankers. And one particularly contentious project is expanding with a new LNG pipeline.

While natural gas is considered the cleanest of fossil fuels because it produces less carbon dioxide than oil or coal, climate scientists say rising use of natural gas is emerging as one of the greatest contributors to human-caused climate change.

Though the stated aim of the LNG buildout is to ensure adequate resources to power the island, LNG imports are bringing methane leaks and diesel exhaust generated by the ships and trucks that transport the fuel, and posing risks associated with potentially explosive infrastructure, say Aviles and other critics. These dangers add to the cumulative risks of existing fossil fuel pipelines, tankers, and other infrastructure that already coexist uneasily with nearby neighborhoods. As they work to heal the wounds wrought by the 2017 hurricane and by Hurricane Fiona in 2022, many Catano residents fear the unintended consequences of an LNG boom.

December 1, 2022

“Flagrant environmental injustice”- groups petition EPA over coal ash pollution

By Grace van Deelen

Seven years after US regulators set what were supposed to be strict rules for the disposal of coal ash—a toxic mix of metals such as arsenic and lead generated by coal-burning power plants—the vast majority of coal power plants are continuing to allow coal ash contamination of groundwater at levels considered unsafe, according to environmental advocacy groups.

Roughly half a billion tons of coal ash at 300 sites across around the United States are exempt from “life-saving health protections,” according to a petition delivered Thursday to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

The petition calls on the agency to update regulations to include the complete closure and cleanup of legacy coal ash landfills and to take “aggressive enforcement against violators.” The petition specifically cites coal ash waste impacting communities in Indiana and Illinois. In addition to the organizations that signed on, the petition received nearly 2,000 citizen signatures.

“We want communities to know exactly what’s happening at their power plant. Much of it is very concerning and very damning,” said Lisa Evans, an attorney at Earthjustice, one of the lead groups petitioning the EPA.

August 30, 2022

Citing “irreversible harm,” lawmaker introduces bill to ban class of pesticides

By Carey Gillam

US Rep. Nydia Velazquez on Tuesday introduced a bill that would ban organophosphates in food production, citing harm to children, farmworkers and other vulnerable communities exposed to the group of chemicals.

“The science has been clear for decades: this type of pesticide is a dangerous neurological threat to farmworkers and our children,” Velázquez said in a statement. “These pesticides during early life have been shown to lead to irreversible harm to the developing brain, which can result in long-term effects like attention disorders, autism, and reduced IQ.”

The move is the latest in a series of actions aimed at reducing US pesticide use, and comes as the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is evaluating continued use of organophosphates, which commonly leave residues in finished food products.

Pesticide manufacturers and agricultural industry groups oppose a ban. A coalition of more than two dozen such groups sent a letter to the EPA in late July, arguing that organophosphates act as an “essential tool” for managing insect pests.

“The continued availability of this group of pesticides is important to US growers due the safety and effectiveness of these proven pesticides,” the coalition said in the letter.

The EPA recently banned food uses of a type of organophosphate called chlorpyrifos, an insecticide popular with farmers but shown by scientific research to cause neurodevelopmental harm to children. Critics say there are more than a dozen other organophosphates that should be similarly banned.