Trump’s Pro-Polluter EPA Strips Protections From Toxic PFAS
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Washington, DC – Today, Donald Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency once again prioritized the needs of big corporate polluters over the health of the American people by officially stripping protections against toxic chemicals, also known as PFAS. Trump is systematically making Americans sicker, exposing them to dangerous pollutants while also stripping them of their access to reliable, affordable health care — all to benefit his ultra-wealthy supporters.
Climate Power Senior Advisor Alex Witt issued the following statement: “Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency should be called the Exempt Polluters Agency. Instead of keeping his promise to ‘Make America Healthy Again’, Trump has let his ultra-wealthy corporate donors dump toxins into our air and water, leaving American families to pay the price with their health. This move will make millions of Americans sicker, all while lining the pockets of corporate polluters.”
Donald Trump and Lee Zeldin are allowing corporate polluters to pump toxins into our water and making Americans sicker:
- At least 73 million Americans are served by water systems with at least one sample above the EPA’s PFAS threshold.
- Trump’s EPA announced it would reconsider wastewater standards for the oil and gas industry, which prevented the pollution of wastewater.
- Trump’s EPA announced it would update protections requiring the safe disposal of coal ash from power plants. These protections provided up to $80 million in annual benefits, reduced arsenic in drinking water, and reduced mercury and lead exposure.
- Trump’s EPA asked a federal court to reverse its own rules regulating PFAS in drinking water.
- The Trump administration held up loans that were aimed at upgrading wastewater and drinking water treatment systems.
- Trump’s EPA proposed a rule to limit states’ ability to block, under the Clean Water Act, the construction of pipelines, coal export terminals, and other polluting energy projects.
- The Trump administration has streamlined permitting for oil pipelines and data centers that disturb wetlands and streams.