Washington – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) outlined a national plan Thursday to deal with public health risks of pollution caused by a family of chemicals used in many household products, including those produced by Minnesota-based 3M Co.
Acting EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler told reporters Thursday that the EPA initiative is moving toward classifying PFAS as a hazardous substance under the EPA’s Superfund program, allowing the EPA to clean up sites and force polluters to pay.
Environmental and consumer groups said the EPA’s plan doesn’t go far enough.
They quickly challenged Wheeler’s decision not to push immediately for a national standard or other measures that will to lower allowable amounts of PFAS in drinking and groundwater.
No mandatory national standard exists for allowable levels of PFAS, only a federal advisory level.
Wheeler said Thursday that EPA feels "70 parts per trillion is a safe level for drinking water."
But Minnesota’s limits, like the federal limits, are "advisory rules, not regulatory standards, " said Jim Kelly, the state’s manager of environmental surveillance and assessments.
Wheeler said EPA will recommend mandatory PFAS toxicity standards by the end of the year but could not say how long the process of approval and implementation would take.
PFAS were discovered in drinking water in eastern Twin Cities in 2004.
"We’re ahead of most states already," said the MPCA’s Smith.