Interested parties — including businesses raising crops or animals on agricultural and ranch lands potentially impacted by PFAS in groundwater; entities operating wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs); and related interest...more
The California Senate’s Environmental Quality Committee recently passed, as amended, SB 682, and referred the bill to the Senate Committee on Health for a further hearing. If ultimately enacted as law, SB 682 would result in...more
On April 2, 2025, Inhance Technologies LLC initiated an action in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia—Inhance Technologies LLC v. Zeldin, Case No. 1:25-cv-00980-JEB—challenging EPA’s refusal to withhold...more
In February 2025, newly installed EPA leadership sought and obtained orders from the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals staying pending legal challenges to two key rulemaking actions by the former administration: the setting of...more
Interested parties—including businesses raising crops or animals on agricultural and ranch lands potentially impacted by PFAS in groundwater; entities operating wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs); and related interest groups...more
"Forever chemicals," continue to make headlines and are rapidly becoming a focal point of state and federal regulations, as well as environmental, product and personal injury litigation. These persistent chemicals called per-...more
On January 14, 2025, EPA released for public comment its Draft Sewage Sludge Risk Assessment for Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA) and Perfluorooctane Sulfonic Acid (PFOS). This draft risk assessment evaluates potential human...more
On January 3, 2025, EPA issued a press release announcing that nine additional PFAS had been added to the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) for Reporting Year 2025. These nine PFAS were automatically added to the TRI pursuant to...more
On December 19, 2024, EPA announced draft national recommended human health criteria (HHC) for three PFAS in waterbodies: perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS), and perfluorobutane sulfonic acid...more
On November 29, 2024, EPA issued a supplemental proposed rule to update significant new use rules (SNURs) previously proposed for 17 PFAS under Section 5 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). A SNUR creates a...more
California Senate Bill (S.B.) 707, the Responsible Textile Recovery Act of 2024, was signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom on Sept. 28 and is the first extended producer responsibility (EPR) law specific to textiles in the...more
On November 14, 2024, the Biden-Harris Administration announced the release of EPA’s third annual progress report on EPA’s PFAS Strategic Roadmap, and the report indicates a growing focus on PFAS-related enforcement and...more
If the first two waves of PFAS litigation focused on impacts to natural resources—namely groundwater—and personal injury claims alleging exposure to PFAS, the third wave of PFAS litigation has certainly arrived.
Originally...more
11/26/2024
/ Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Manufacturers ,
Negligent Misrepresentation ,
PFAS ,
Proposition 65 ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Supply Chain ,
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)
On October 8, 2024, the EPA proposed adding 16 individual and 15 categories of PFAS to the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) list of chemicals subject to reporting under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act...more
On September 30, 2024, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced that he signed AB 2515 into law. Among other things, AB 2515 prohibits the manufacture, distribution, and sale of menstrual products containing “regulated...more
On September 5, 2024, EPA published a direct final rule delaying by eight months the one-time reporting required under TSCA section 8(a)(7) for entities manufacturing or importing PFAS at any time between 2011-2022. This rule...more
Three states have lodged a petition with EPA, seeking the listing of four PFAS compounds as hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) under the Clean Air Act (CAA). In the petition, dated August 29, 2024, the North Carolina Department...more
A legal challenge is pending in the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals with respect to EPA’s April 19, 2024 final rule designating perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) as hazardous substances under...more
On June 10, 2024, in Center for Environmental Health v. Regan (No. 23-1476), the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals held that federal courts do not have jurisdiction to review EPA’s grant of a petition under the Toxic Substances...more
Two legal challenges have been filed in the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals with respect to EPA’s April 10, 2024, final rule setting legally enforceable Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs) for six PFAS in drinking water...more
On May 16, 2024, President Biden signed the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 (the “Act”), which includes two provisions supporting airports’ transition to PFAS-free firefighting foams. Section 762 of the Act, also known as the...more
On May 8, 2024, EPA published in the Federal Register its final rule designating perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) as hazardous substances under CERCLA. The designation of these two PFAS...more
Among the wide-ranging impacts of EPA’s designation of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) as hazardous substances under CERCLA may be increased liability for trustees and beneficiaries of...more
On April 19, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) announced its final rule designating perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) as hazardous substances under Section 102(a) of...more
4/29/2024
/ CERCLA ,
Clean-Up Costs ,
Contamination ,
Due Diligence ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Final Rules ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Liability ,
PFAS ,
Public Health
The United States Environmental Protection Agency has released a final regulation setting individual drinking water maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) for five per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). These MCLs are...more