The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will retain strict limits for two common PFAS chemicals in drinking water but delay enforcement and rescind standards for four others.
Hiroko Tabuchi reports for The New York Times.
In short:
- The Trump administration will maintain Biden-era limits on PFOA and PFOS in drinking water but push the compliance deadline to 2031. Limits for four other PFAS chemicals will be dropped.
- The rollback follows legal pressure from industry and water utilities, which argued the original rules were financially burdensome and technically challenging to meet.
- The EPA plans to restart the rule-making process for the dropped chemicals, including GenX, PFHxS, PFNA, and PFBS, and introduce a new rule next spring.
Key quote:
“This is a clear victory for the trillion-dollar chemical industry, not public health.”
— Emily Donovan, co-founder of Clean Cape Fear
Why this matters:
PFAS chemicals—used in everyday products from nonstick pans to firefighting foam—are almost impossible to break down, and they accumulate in human bodies and the environment over time. Studies link exposure to PFAS with cancer, liver and kidney damage, immune system disruptions, and developmental harm in children. These risks prompted the EPA under former President Biden to propose near-zero drinking water limits. Now, with the Trump administration rolling back those efforts for four types of PFAS, public health advocates fear more communities could be left vulnerable to long-term contamination. The regulatory about-face also comes amid broader concerns about how costs and corporate influence shape environmental policy. While the EPA says it will restart rule-making, the time lost could mean continued exposure for millions relying on public water systems, as PFAS remain widely present in water, air, and soil across the country.
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