Senator Peters Applauds First-Ever National Drinking Water Standard to Protect Americans from Toxic PFAS Chemicals
WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) released the following statement on the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) first-ever national drinking water standard to protect Americans from harmful per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).The EPA’s new standard comes with an announced investment of nearly $1 billion in federal funding made available through the bipartisan infrastructure law that Peters helped enact to implement PFAS testing and treatment efforts to address PFAS contamination.
“Every person deserves access to safe, clean drinking water, but PFAS chemicals continue to threaten the health and lives of people across our state,” said Senator Peters. “I have long pushed for stricter standards to protect Americans from PFAS exposure, and I applaud this new EPA standard and significant investment of federal dollars that will help our state and nation make serious progress in the fight to rid our communities of these toxic, deadly chemicals.”
“This is a monumental victory for the American people,” said Tony Spaniola, Co-Chair of the Great Lakes PFAS Action Network. “Simply put, these PFAS drinking water standards will save the lives of countless Americans for generations to come. Thank you to President Biden for putting public health, and sound science, above the demands of powerful special interests. Thank you to the EPA for its diligent work. And thank you to our friends and allies in Congress and in communities across the country for never giving up. Together, we have shown that government can work for all of us.”
Peters has led and championed efforts to address toxic PFAS chemicals. In September 2018, Peters helped convene the first-ever hearing on PFAS contamination in the Senate, which assessed the federal government’s response to PFAS contamination and remediation efforts. He then convened a field summit in Grand Rapids in November 2018 to shine a light on how local, state and federal governments are coordinating responses to address PFAS contamination. Peters also convened a hearing in 2021 as Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee to examine how servicemembers, their families, and communities across the country have been harmed by exposure to toxic PFAS substances connected to military sites. He also previously supported and led provisions in the national defense bill to prohibit the Defense Department (DoD) from purchasing or using firefighting foams containing PFAS chemicals for military training exercises, and enhanced state cooperation DoD to clean-up PFAS contamination stemming from military-related activities.
Peters introduced and advanced bipartisan legislation to reduce the spread of PFAS chemicals at commercial airports. The Preventing PFAS Runoff at Airports Act, which was signed into law in 2022, is working to deploy more existing Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) funding for commercial airports to purchase devices to test their firefighting equipment without discharging toxic PFAS chemicals. In 2022, Peters’ bill to help protect firefighters and emergency responders from PFAS exposure in the line of duty was also signed into law.
Peters has also utilized his role as a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee to advance PFAS remediation efforts in communities across Michigan. During a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing last May, Peters pressed Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall to commit to taking immediate remedial actions without any further delays. In 2022, as Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Petersconvened a field hearing in East Lansing with officials from the Department of Defense (DoD), Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to examine federal efforts and coordination with state and local governments to clean up and prevent contamination from PFAS, and to examine the impact exposure to these toxic chemicals has had on servicemembers, first responders, families, and other Michiganders. He has also taken steps to hold the DoD accountablefor their failure to meet key PFAS reporting deadlines.
Peters recently applauded DoD’s announced plans to expand use of PFAS mitigation strategies pioneered in Northern Michigan at more than 30 DoD installations and National Guard facilities nationwide, including Selfridge Air National Guard Base and Camp Grayling. Last year, Peters also applauded steps taken by the Air Force to prevent further spread of PFAS-contaminated water into local water systems by installing groundwater treatment facilities at the former Wurtsmith Air Force Base in Oscoda.
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