Water activists 'concerned' but will keep fighting 'forever chemicals' as Trump returns

Source: USA Today

Published 5:14 a.m. ET Nov. 8, 2024 | Updated 11:09 a.m. ET Nov. 8, 2024


Many Americans remember April 8 this year for the once-in-a-lifetime eclipse that swept across the country, but for Tony Spaniola, the true “generational milestone” came two days later. On April 10, Spaniola stood among a handful of fellow activists in an ornate White House office, jubilantly glued to a television screen showing officials from the Environmental Protection Agency announcing the first-ever limits on so-called “forever chemicals” in drinking water.

“It was truly like an out-of-body experience, like I cannot believe,” the clean water advocate remembered thinking. “A few years ago, I couldn't get anybody to talk to me. But now, here I am in the White House watching this. It's really happening,” said Spaniola, a 66-year-old attorney from suburban Detroit.

Dozens of citizen action groups have sprouted up near military bases, chemical plants and other sites where PFAS, or per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances, have been released into the environment. These toxic, human-made chemicals don’t break down easily in nature or in human bodies, with some linked to increased risks for cancer and other serious health problems.

The EPA’s announcement of limits this spring marked a turning point for many of these PFAS activists, Spaniola said. But some, including Spaniola, now worry about potential rollbacks in PFAS monitoring and regulation under President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming administration, citing a lack of urgency and the suppression of a PFAS health study during Trump’s first term.

Read more: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/investigations/2024/11/08/water-activists-worried-about-trump-presidency/76110402007/