Potential Second Trump Term Could Hinder Regulations on Toxic ‘Forever Chemicals', Experts Caution
Allies of former President Trump and Project 2025 have suggested measures that could limit the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) power to regulate harmful substances like PFAS, raising concerns among experts and environmental activists about the potential health risks to millions of Americans.
During the past year, the EPA has established significant drinking water standards for the highly toxic PFAS compounds and labeled several of these "forever chemicals" as hazardous substances, compelling industries to clean up their pollution. These steps were significant victories for water quality and public health, but a new Trump administration could potentially dismantle these regulations.
Comments from former Trump EPA officials, the far-right Project 2025 initiative, and the Trump-supported American Chemistry Council (ACC) indicate intentions to weaken these rules. Their proposed administrative changes are designed to undermine the EPA's ability to safeguard public health from chemicals like PFAS.
Project 2025's strategy against the EPA aligns with recent conservative judicial victories that limit the agency's rule-making capacity. The plan aims to centralize decision-making about toxic chemicals within a small group of Trump appointees, sidelining scientific expertise. Project 2025, orchestrated by the right-wing Heritage Foundation, serves as a strategic plan for a potential Trump administration.
Erik Olson, legislative director at the Natural Resource Defense Council, noted, "The entire framework of how the EPA evaluates science and develops regulations is under attack. The Trump administration has learned from past experiences and would be more precise and effective in its approach this time."
PFAS are a group of around 15,000 chemicals used to make products resistant to water, stains, and heat. Known as "forever chemicals" because they do not naturally decompose, they accumulate over time and are associated with cancer, kidney disease, liver issues, immune disorders, birth defects, and other severe health problems.
In 2021, the Biden administration introduced the PFAS Strategic Roadmap, a comprehensive plan to reduce PFAS pollution in water, air, food, soil, and across the economy.
The American Chemistry Council and its allies have attempted to block the drinking water limits through lawsuits. The ACC, the fourth largest lobbying group in the U.S., maintains close ties with the Trump administration.
While Project 2025 does not explicitly address the drinking water limits, it advocates for revising groundwater cleanup regulations to account for ubiquitous contaminants like PFAS, echoing industry arguments that PFAS contamination is widespread and regulatory agencies should not impose excessive demands on the industry.
Project 2025 also seeks to dismantle the EPA office responsible for assessing chemical toxicity. This office's evaluations inform the agency's regulatory standards and it is currently conducting multiple reviews of PFAS. The industry has long aimed to weaken this office because its findings complicate the establishment of business-friendly regulations.
An anonymous EPA employee stated, "Industry prefers not to have any part of the agency declare chemicals as toxic while they claim these substances are safe for consumption."
The ACC and Project 2025 aim to narrow the PFAS definition, excluding certain chemicals from regulation. This could lead to the reclassification of hazardous substances, making them appear less dangerous and allowing industry to evade regulations.
The EPA is working on regulations for PFAS subclasses due to the sheer number of these chemicals. Lacking comprehensive data, scientists use "chemical analogs" to fill in gaps and assess dangers. Project 2025 proposes eliminating this method, which would reduce available information, making it harder to restrict chemicals without data.
Project 2025 also aims to prevent the EPA from banning dangerous chemicals. Former Trump officials have dismissed concerns over PFAS as "scare tactics," and Project 2025 argues that toxic chemical regulations are based on incomplete or mischaracterized science.
The plan proposes stripping the EPA of its rule-making power, concentrating authority among political appointees. On the first day, Project 2025 states, "The EPA will not conduct any ongoing or planned scientific activities without clear and current congressional authorization," potentially giving the White House control over scientific decisions.
The entire Office of Research and Development might be eliminated, as no law mandates the EPA to conduct research, the EPA employee noted. "If they don't like what the EPA is doing, they'll take it out of the agency's hands," the employee said. "They want a small group making the rules while disregarding the rest of the agency.