Center for Environmental Health 349d ago

1.5 million North Carolina residents have been exposed to toxic PFAS ‘Forever Chemicals’ in their drinking water. And EPA is not protecting them. Alongside our partners at Clean Cape Fear, Cape Fear River Watch, and Toxic Free NC, we formally petitioned the U.S. EPA to force Chemours - the DuPont spinoff company that has released PFAS chemicals into the Cape Fear River and surrounding drinking water aquifers - to pay for health studies on 54 different PFAS chemicals released to the environment, including several found in the river, the source of drinking water for nearly a half million residents, and private drinking water wells. But EPA denied the petition, and the groups are challenging this decision in court. While residents of the Cape Fear region continue to lose friends and family due to rare forms of cancer and other diseases linked to PFAS, struggle to pay growing medical bills, and fight for clean drinking water at home and in schools, Chemours seeks to grow its profits by expanding its operations and the EPA refuses to use its authority under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) to hold a known polluter accountable for critical testing on the health impacts of its chemicals. This is environmental injustice in action - and it has to stop. President Joe Biden and EPA Administrator Michael Regan have committed to acting on PFAS. This would be an opportunity for them to turn their words into actions. Sign the petition, and tell EPA to protect people - not polluters. Visit ceh.org/CapeFear Courage to join the fight. Video by Peak Plastic Foundation