The Trump administration is considering rolling back a major Biden-era regulation on “forever chemicals” in drinking water, a move that could leave people more exposed to the substances linked to cancer, high blood pressure and fertility problems.
But any attempt to weaken the rule would run into a formidable statutory standard, experts say — the same one that has gotten EPA into legal messes in the past.
Finalized last spring, EPA’s current rule requires water utilities to remove the man-made chemicals from drinking water starting in four years. Formally called per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances or PFAS, “forever chemicals” are known for their virtual indestructibility and have been found in approximately half the nation’s tap water.
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said last week that a rewrite of the rule could be in order. Utilities and “Republican senators” are concerned that communities with contaminated water will need to install expensive filtration systems in order to comply, Zeldin told a room of state officials at the Environmental Council of the States conference in Arlington, Virginia.
