MADISON, Wis. – Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul joined 17 attorneys general in insisting the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) strengthen its proposed regulations requiring importers of certain products containing perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (collectively “PFAS”) in their surface coating to notify and receive EPA’s approval before importing the products.

 “Wisconsin parents shouldn’t have to be fearful about the safety of the water their kids are drinking, and I will continue working to protect our water from these forever chemicals,” said AG Kaul. “EPA rules regarding PFAS should be comprehensive. They shouldn’t include dangerous carveouts or exceptions.”

 AG Kaul and 17 attorneys general are calling on the EPA to strengthen the PFAS proposal by:

  1. including a broader set of PFAS compounds that are regulated by the rule;
  2. applying the rule to products that contain PFAS anywhere in the product, not just in their surface coating;
  3. applying the rule to the domestic processing of new products, not just to the importing of them; and
  4. not allowing any carve outs to the notification requirement for small amounts of PFAS.

 The comment letter notes, “PFAS are pernicious “forever chemicals” that pose serious adverse risks to human health and the environment at extremely low levels – e.g., parts per trillion in drinking water. Each of our states is working hard to address the public health challenge of PFAS-contaminated drinking water and widespread public exposure to PFAS at potentially harmful levels. PFAS are a large class of thousands of unique chemical substances. The distribution and use of these chemicals are marked by a history of bringing new substances to market as existing substances in use become subject to regulation. It is now clear, based upon a robust body of science, that in order to protect human health and the environment, exposures to PFAS chemicals must be lowered to the greatest extent possible.”

https://www.doj.state.wi.us/news-releases/ag-kaul-reacts-proposed-epa-rules-pfas-amid-nationwide-concerns-about-%E2%80%9Cforever

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