Bloomberg Law
Feb. 14, 2019, 7:29 PM UTC

Special Edition: EPA’s Big New Chemicals Plan, Explained

Chuck McCutcheon
Chuck McCutcheon
Editor/Reporter
Steven Gibb
Steven Gibb
Copy Editor

The EPA made big news today: It announced it would start pursuing a nationwide standard for two chemicals blamed for contaminating drinking water.

The fluorinated chemicals are important ingredients in making products such as Teflon or Scotchgard.

The agency also will list them as hazardous substances. That means companies that made them may have to bear the costs of cleaning them out of soil and water.

Some of the health effects of exposure to high levels of fluorinated chemicals, according to the EPA.
Some of the health effects of exposure to high levels of fluorinated chemicals, according to the EPA.
Graphic: Bloomberg Environment

How are people reacting? Many of them are extremely critical.

The agency didn’t commit to creating a strict new limit for the compounds in drinking water. That’s not enough for critics.

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