Peace Garden News

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), member of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee, joined Senator Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) in introducing a five-bill package to protect industries and municipalities from legal claims should the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) designate per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) compounds as hazardous substances.

The EPA proposed a rule designating two PFAS compounds as hazardous substances under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA), also known as “Superfund.” If finalized, it could hold water treatment plants, landfills, farms, and ranches liable for PFAS contamination for which they are not responsible. Further, airports, fuel depots, and refineries, all of which are required to test and use fire suppression foam containing PFAS, could be subject to litigation.

“The EPA's decision to designate PFAS as hazardous substances under CERCLA could have significant consequences for our farmers, waste and water systems, and airports in North Dakota by exposing them to unfounded litigation risk,” said Senator Cramer. “Our legislation protects them from being roped into endless lawsuits for pollution they did not create or which resulted from simply following applicable federal and state regulations.”

“There is no doubt we need to consider the environmental impacts of PFAS chemicals but suing entities who did not contribute to the contamination is overkill, especially considering some of these entities, such as ranches and water facilities, are just downstream receivers,” said Senator Lummis. “This is another instance of the Environmental Protection Agency overstepping its authority and putting onerous regulations on businesses in Wyoming. That is why I am introducing this suite of legislation to protect entities from frivolous lawsuits.”

Joining Senators Cramer and Lummis are Senators Roger Wicker (R-MS), John Boozman (R-AR), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), Lindsay Graham (R-SC), and Dan Sullivan (R-AK).

Background:

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances are long-lasting, synthetic chemicals found in products like clothing, carpets, furniture fabrics, adhesives, paper packaging for food, and heat-resistant/non-stick cookware. These chemicals can also be found in people’s and animals’ blood and in the environment at low levels.  

The five bills in the package are the Agriculture PFAS Liability Protection Act, Airports PFAS Liability Protection Act, Fire Suppression PFAS Liability Protection Act, Resource Management PFAS Liability Protection Act, and Water Systems PFAS Liability Protection Act.

Original source can be found here.