The Environmental Protection Agency has revised its public statements after acknowledging that two highly hazardous PFAS chemicals—linked to cancer and classified as unsafe at any exposure level—remain in production despite a claimed phase-out. While the EPA maintains strict warnings about the risks of PFOA and PFOS in drinking water, it has permitted a Texas-based chemical firm to continue manufacturing plastic containers from which PFOA has been detected leaching into stored products. The company’s annual output of up to 200 million containers spans industries nationwide, raising concerns over widespread exposure. Critics question how regulatory oversight aligns with scientific warnings when production of these toxic compounds persists.
Agency changes wording on website as Texas-based chemical firm continues manufacture of plastic containersThe Environmental Protection Agency has quietly backtracked on a claim that the US has phased out two of the most dangerous Pfas compounds – Pfoa and Pfos.The EPA has found that virtually no level of exposure to either in drinking water is safe, and the International Agency for Research on Cancer classifies Pfoa as “carcinogenic to humans” and Pfos as “possibly carcinogenic”. Still, the EPA is allowing Houston-based Inhance to produce containers from which Pfoa has been found to leach at high levels into the containers’ contents. The company makes up to 200m plastic containers annually used across the US economy. Continue reading...
