September 18th, 2019

On Sept.18, 2019 Governor Whitmer joined a bipartisan group of 14 state Governors to urge the United States House & Senate Armed Service Committee to take swift action on PFAS contamination. The letter highlighted several key provisions related to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the FY2020 National Defense Authorization Act and asked for those provisions to be included in the final legislation. These provisions include requiring the EPA to set an enforceable, nationwide drinking water standard under the Safe Drinking Water Act, to list PFAS chemicals as hazardous substances under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, and to revise the list of toxic pollutants under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to include PFAS and publish effluent and pretreatment standards.  The letter also called for an accelerated timeline for the phase out of PFAS firefighting foam, and urged the U.S. Department of Defense to work with affected states to remediate PFAS contamination as soon as possible. These requests also include access to funding for the National Guard Bureau, and authorization for the U.S. Geological Survey to develop advanced testing methods for PFAS contamination. MLCV applauds this effort to urge our Federal government to step in on this important issue. 

 

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