The Environmental Protection Agency’s decision to revoke six Biden-era rules on toxic PFAS has drawn renewed criticism from clean water advocates.

Federal officials want to narrow drinking water limits on four PFAS chemicals, often called “forever chemicals.” They said the rule-making process was legally flawed. The agency would also give companies and water agencies two additional years to comply with rules on two other substances.

Maria Doa, senior director of chemical policy for the Environmental Defense Fund, said the federal government is putting profit ahead of public health.

“This is part of a coordinated approach,” Doa contended. “A lot of the people at EPA are former chemical industry people who are integral to rolling back these regulations.”

PFAS chemicals have been the subject of legal action in Maryland. In 2024, the state sued materials manufacturer W.L. Gore and Associates, accusing the company of knowingly releasing the chemicals from its facilities and greatly affecting Cecil County. Earlier this year, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to allow the lawsuit to continue through lower courts, meaning the state must wage its legal battle through the federal legal system.

Doa argued the rollback is part of a broader attack on clean water and evidence that the Trump administration favors big business and the questionable materials some companies use.

“They’re extremely bad,” Doa said of PFAS. “They cause so many different harms to the body at extremely low level. And the other thing is many of these PFAS build up in your body and stay there for a long time.”

A number of military installations in Maryland have recorded elevated levels of PFAS, including Joint Base Andrews, Aberdeen Proving Ground and the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory Chesapeake Bay Detachment.

Source: Public News Service