PFAS is a class of chemical substances with varying properties, but in general act as surfactants.
PFAS are considered carcinogenic and impact birth weight.
PFAS contain a carbon-fluorine bond, which is a very strong bond that does not naturally degrade.
Some PFAS will naturally decrease concentration over time, but only to be transformed into other compounds that will not (often PFOS).
Regulation.
The US EPA has taken the approach of regulating a select few PFAS, generally based on their known toxicity. PFOA and PFOS will essentially be limited to a concentration of zero.
The US EPA has been working on this for years. Mr. Biden did not snap his fingers and make a regulation. These things move much slower than that, and the industry generally feels that this process moved too quickly because there is limited understanding of how much PFAS exists in drinking water.
Health Canada has proposed a guideline which limits PFAS to 30 ng/L (ppt) as a total sum of all compounds that can be accurately measured. Currently their guidelines limit PFOA to 200 ng/L and PFOS to 600 ng/L. Health Canada does not regulate your water provider through, that is up to your provincial/territorial government, which may have different guidelines than this.
PFAS in the environment.
PFAS is ubiquitous in the environment due to its travel through the water cycle. It exists in Antarctic ice and on top of Mount Everest.
Usually the largest sources of PFAS in drinking water are firefighting training areas that used PFAS containing foams (airports and military bases), landfills, certain manufacturers (metal plating, paper, semiconductors), and municipal wastewater. There are many more sources than this though.
Landfills and municipal wastewater tend to be the highest mass loading of PFAS because of the ubiquity of PFAS in consumer products.
Treatment.
PFAS can be destroyed using electrochemical and thermal methods, but these are not feasible for drinking water treatment.
The current approach for drinking water treatment is adsorption to either granular activated carbon (GAC) or ion exchange resin.
Treating PFAS at the source is always the goal instead of treating it at a water treatment plant.
Feel free to ask questions, I will do my best to answer them!
No questions here but I appreciate your bullet point breakdown.
Because when people say Biden can make the DEA deschedule cannabis, people say he ain't a dictator and agencies are independent...
But when an agency does a good thing, it's cause Biden told them too?
He can change the schedule through the HHS and DEA, without congressional approval, and he has already instructed them to do so. The HHS recommended schedule 3, but the DEA continues to propose schedule 1. Harris has been pressing the DEA, as well as identifying opportunities to pardon more people with marijuana convictions.
So, what the hell is the DEA waiting on? Biden appointed the head of the DEA. Changing the schedule for marijuana should have been a top priority for any DEA selection.
Which is why it makes no sense Biden is "trying" to reschedule.
My point is either Biden's right and he can't control the DEA so shouldn't get credit for this.
Or he should get credit for this, and the DEA not descheduling (or even rescheduling) is because Biden isn't actually trying.
I ain't a big enough hypocrite to change reality so it makes Biden look best in every situation
Descheduling would still require approvals from both organizations, unless done by executive order. Executive orders are temporary solutions to allow proper legislative action. If he descheduled with executive order, and the HHS and DEA didn’t not agree, the schedule would return at the end of the order. That would be highly disruptive to the industry.
Good. Doesn't seem like anyone else was going to do it.
Some facts:
Background info.
PFAS is a class of chemical substances with varying properties, but in general act as surfactants.
PFAS are considered carcinogenic and impact birth weight.
PFAS contain a carbon-fluorine bond, which is a very strong bond that does not naturally degrade.
Some PFAS will naturally decrease concentration over time, but only to be transformed into other compounds that will not (often PFOS).
Regulation.
The US EPA has taken the approach of regulating a select few PFAS, generally based on their known toxicity. PFOA and PFOS will essentially be limited to a concentration of zero.
The US EPA has been working on this for years. Mr. Biden did not snap his fingers and make a regulation. These things move much slower than that, and the industry generally feels that this process moved too quickly because there is limited understanding of how much PFAS exists in drinking water.
Health Canada has proposed a guideline which limits PFAS to 30 ng/L (ppt) as a total sum of all compounds that can be accurately measured. Currently their guidelines limit PFOA to 200 ng/L and PFOS to 600 ng/L. Health Canada does not regulate your water provider through, that is up to your provincial/territorial government, which may have different guidelines than this.
PFAS in the environment.
PFAS is ubiquitous in the environment due to its travel through the water cycle. It exists in Antarctic ice and on top of Mount Everest.
Usually the largest sources of PFAS in drinking water are firefighting training areas that used PFAS containing foams (airports and military bases), landfills, certain manufacturers (metal plating, paper, semiconductors), and municipal wastewater. There are many more sources than this though.
Landfills and municipal wastewater tend to be the highest mass loading of PFAS because of the ubiquity of PFAS in consumer products.
Treatment.
PFAS can be destroyed using electrochemical and thermal methods, but these are not feasible for drinking water treatment.
The current approach for drinking water treatment is adsorption to either granular activated carbon (GAC) or ion exchange resin.
Treating PFAS at the source is always the goal instead of treating it at a water treatment plant.
Feel free to ask questions, I will do my best to answer them!
No questions here but I appreciate your bullet point breakdown.
I'll note that this is very different from what the Trump administration did, where they actively worked to create a loophole for this pollution. If you're an American who prefers to see active regulation of chemicals which raise cancer risk and harm reproduction, it's worth checking your voter registration to make sure it hasn't been purged, volunteering if possible, and donating if you can afford it
Now we just need to force DuPont and 3M to pay for this mess they made
But they have paid already. What do you think all the lobbying was for?
They have settled several lawsuits already and there are more to come. It will never be enough, but it is inaccurate to say that they haven't paid.
Point of use filtration
https://www.consumerreports.org/water-contamination/how-to-get-pfas-out-of-your-drinking-water-a7303943293/
Wait...
So Biden does have control over the EPA?
Because when people say Biden can make the DEA deschedule cannabis, people say he ain't a dictator and agencies are independent...
But when an agency does a good thing, it's cause Biden told them too?
He can change the schedule through the HHS and DEA, without congressional approval, and he has already instructed them to do so. The HHS recommended schedule 3, but the DEA continues to propose schedule 1. Harris has been pressing the DEA, as well as identifying opportunities to pardon more people with marijuana convictions.
So, what the hell is the DEA waiting on? Biden appointed the head of the DEA. Changing the schedule for marijuana should have been a top priority for any DEA selection.
It's harder to reschedule than deschedule...
Which is why it makes no sense Biden is "trying" to reschedule.
My point is either Biden's right and he can't control the DEA so shouldn't get credit for this.
Or he should get credit for this, and the DEA not descheduling (or even rescheduling) is because Biden isn't actually trying.
I ain't a big enough hypocrite to change reality so it makes Biden look best in every situation
Descheduling would still require approvals from both organizations, unless done by executive order. Executive orders are temporary solutions to allow proper legislative action. If he descheduled with executive order, and the HHS and DEA didn’t not agree, the schedule would return at the end of the order. That would be highly disruptive to the industry.