Under Pressure from Senator Hassan, EPA to Consider Setting Maximum Contaminant Level for PFAS in Drinking Water

WASHINGTON – Under pressure from Senator Maggie Hassan and others, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt announced that the EPA will consider setting a maximum contaminant level allowed in drinking water for the chemicals PFOA and PFOS. Senator Hassan has cosponsored legislation that would require the EPA to develop a maximum contaminant level for perfluorinated compounds (including PFOA and PFOS). Administrator Pruitt’s announcement also follows pressure from Senator Hassan to stop blocking the release of a study about the health impacts of PFOA and PFOS in drinking water.

“I appreciate that the EPA has announced that it will consider setting a maximum contaminant level for PFAS in drinking water, a long-overdue step in the federal government’s response to communities who have been speaking out and demanding answers about the safety of their drinking water,” Senator Hassan said. “However, given the Trump Administration’s decision to block the release of a study about the health impacts of PFAS in drinking water and Administrator Pruitt’s closeness to the chemical industry, including their prominent role in the EPA’s PFAS National Leadership Summit, I remain concerned about the Administration’s commitment on this critical issue. I will continue pushing Administrator Pruitt and the EPA to follow through on this announcement and to create federal safety guidelines for PFAS in order to help to clarify the safety and quality of drinking water in New Hampshire and across the country.”

The legislation Senator Hassan cosponsored would require the EPA to develop a maximum contaminant level for perfluorinated compounds (including PFOA and PFOS), 1,4 dioxane, and perchlorate in public water systems across America within two years of the bill’s enactment. This legislation would also require the EPA to create safety guidelines and to determine legally enforceable standards that apply to public water systems. Additionally, the bill would require the EPA to identify a threshold of expected risk to health for each of the listed chemicals.

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