Thomas Young, Regional Communications Manager, thomas.young@sierraclub.org
This week, Politico reported that Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler will not consider federal limits on per- and polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS) chemicals that are fueling a water contamination crisis in hundreds of communities across the country, including in Colorado. According to the article, “EPA's decision means the chemicals will remain unregulated under the Safe Drinking Water Act, according to sources familiar with a still-unreleased draft plan that acting administrator Andrew Wheeler signed off on in late December.” Wheeler also failed to answer questions from Democratic leadership about his plans for regulating the chemical, which is in the bloodstream of an estimated 98% of Americans, and is linked to thyroid and kidney damages, pregnancy complications, as well as cancer.
PFAS chemicals have been detected in water supplies for more than 100,000 Colorado residents. People living downstream from Peterson Air Force Base have some of the highest PFAS levels in their bodies ever recorded in the United States. The PFAS chemicals that polluted these communities are still legally discharged into the environment, but due to inadequate oversight people don’t know if their water supplies are similarly contaminated.
On Tuesday, Feb. 5, the Senate Environment and Public Works committee will vote on Wheeler’s nomination to officially head the EPA. PFAS’s toxic legacy is too harmful to ignore. Senator Cory Gardner must do what is best for Colorado and reject Andrew Wheeler’s nomination to head the EPA.
In response, Fran Silva Blayney, Chair of Sierra Club’s Fountain Creek Water Sentinels released the following statement:
“It is time for Congress to stop allowing the coal lobby, the chemical lobby, and the companies that manufacture products that make us sick to regulate themselves. This kind of corporate collusion has got to stop. We need a true protector of public health to head up the EPA, not a stooge for corporate polluters. I urge Senator Gardner to oppose this ill-thought nomination."
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3 million members and supporters. In addition to helping people from all backgrounds explore nature and our outdoor heritage, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.