BCLPemerging.com
Welcome to the “EMERGING CONTAMINANTS/EMERGING SOLUTIONS” blog. We understand that businesses need up-to-date information regarding their regulatory obligations and litigation risk. Our goal here is to provide our readers with some of that information as it relates to “emerging” contaminants, meaning those that have escaped regulation to date, but are now targets of the federal, state and local regulators, as well as “emerging” solutions, which include novel ways to address contamination and environmental/toxic tort litigation, such as the use of DNA evidence. We hope that manufacturers, retailers, and other entities in the product distribution chain, as well as owners and operators of contaminated property, will find this blog useful.
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On January 10, 2022, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) submitted a proposed rule to the White House Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) to designate perfluorooctanoic acid (“PFOA”) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (“PFOS”) as ”hazardous substances” under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (“CERCLA”).
33 states have either enacted or proposed regulations regarding per- or polyfluoroalkyl substances (“PFAS”) present in Class B Aqueous Film-Forming Foams (“AFFF”) used for firefighting, or present in firefighters’ clothing and equipment. These regulations typically involve restrictions in four general areas:
As anticipated, 2021 was an eventful year for the regulation of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (“PFAS”) at the federal level. BCLP has highlighted the key developments in this document, but this is not intended to be a comprehensive list of all of the federal actions with respect to PFAS over the past year.
Seventeen states have either enacted or proposed limitations regarding using PFAS substances in food packaging containers and materials (“Food Packaging”). These regulations are intended to address public and agency concerns that the storage of food in Food Packaging that includes PFAS compounds may result in ingestion of those PFAS compounds. Commonly cited examples of Food Packaging that have historically contained PFAS compounds include certain pizza boxes, microwave popcorn bags, fast food containers, and candy wrappers.
North Carolina has begun the process of regulating per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (“PFAS”) in drinking water and groundwater. This client alert reflects the status of PFAS regulations in North Carolina as of November 16, 2021.
In a letter to the Governor of New Mexico on October 26, 2021, the Administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) announced that EPA would initiate two important rulemaking efforts to regulate PFAS substances under the RCRA framework: