Friday, March 11, 2016

3 Governors Ask EPA for Review After the Emerging Chemical PFOA Found in Water



By The Associated Press


CONCORD, N.H.

Mar 10, 2016, 3:42 PM ET





The governors of New Hampshire, New York and Vermont are urging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to review and issue new safe drinking water guidelines regarding an emerging contaminant that's shown up in water systems and in private wells.

They wrote to EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy on Thursday asking for a review of the best available science regarding PFOA. It's part of a family of chemicals used to make nonstick cookware and stain-resistant carpeting.

Last month, Honeywell International and Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics were sued in New York. Regulators identified them as potentially responsible for chemical contamination in Hoosick Falls' water.

Saint-Gobain last owned the now-closed ChemFab plant in southwestern Vermont. It's been providing bottled water to residents since PFOA was found in North Bennington. It also found PFOA in samples in Merrimack, New Hampshire.