Focus
EPA health advisory for PFAS compounds spurs lawsuit
E&E News - July 14
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s dramatic new health advisory for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) is facing a lawsuit from a manufacturer of one of the compounds addressed in the advisory, known as “GenX.” The manufacturer, Chemours Co., sued EPA on Wednesday weeks after the agency declared that GenX’s health risks mean the chemical is only safe in drinking water at extremely low levels. Although the advisory level is not an enforceable limit and any forthcoming regulations would likely be at a higher threshold, Chemours contends in a petition to the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit that the nonbinding advisories under the Safe Drinking Water Act lack scientific integrity.
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News
Judge rules LA port violated state environmental law in two-decade battle over China Shipping Terminal
Daily Breeze – July 13
Environmentalists recently won a round in an ongoing 20-year legal battle over air pollution emanating from the Port of Los Angeles’ 142-acre China Shipping Terminal. The latest decision stems from a 2020 lawsuit filed by environmental groups and the South Coast Air Quality Management District challenging Los Angeles’ approval of a supplemental environmental impact report that eliminated a number of previously adopted mitigation measures aimed at reducing emissions at the terminal. San Diego County Superior Court Judge Timothy Taylor found that the port violated the California Environmental Quality Act in several ways by certifying the supplemental EIR. The court characterized as “completely baseless” an assumption in the port’s analysis that China Shipping would agree to amend its lease in 2019 to require necessary mitigation.
San Diego lawmakers free up border pollution funding
The San Diego Union-Tribune – July 8
Persistent water pollution on the San Diego County coast may be a step closer to cleanup after two San Diego lawmakers revised language to allow the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to transfer $300 million to the International Boundary and Water Commission for wastewater treatment. The funds, authorized as part of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, can be used for planning, study, design, and construction of wastewater treatment works, according to Reps. Sara Jacobs and Juan Vargas’ offices.
Federal government looks at expanding habitat for world’s most endangered whales
Courthouse News Service – July 11
North Pacific right whales, the most endangered whales in the world, could gain an expanded protected habitat from Alaska to Baja California if the federal government approves the expansion after a one-year review now underway. On Monday, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries announced the review in response to a petition filed this past March by two environmental groups seeking to revise the critical habitat designation for North Pacific right whales under the Endangered Species Act. The species’ population is down to only about 30 individuals due to few surviving reproducing females, according to the petitioners.
California regulators identify methane leaks in East Bakersfield wells
PBS – July 8
At least 30 wells in East Bakersfield belonging to five different companies were found to have been leaking methane, a potent greenhouse gas, in recent weeks, according to the Geologic Energy Management Division of the California Department of Conservation (CalGEM). Initial reports said some wells were releasing methane at a concentration of 50,000 parts per million – a level that can be explosive, environmental groups say. In an emailed statement, the agency added that it “has previously engaged or taken enforcement action against” all of the companies with leaky wells. The findings have put a spotlight on the legacy of fossil fuel production in the county, and, in the face of climate change-linked disasters like drought, heat waves and wildfires, is spurring environmental groups to push for regulators to curb methane pollution at the source.
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