drinking water
EPA proposes new rule to crack down on PFAS, forever chemicals in our water
The EPA on Tuesday announced its proposed maximum contaminant levels — MCLs– for six types of toxic PFAS in drinking water and acknowledged that no amount of these compounds is safe. “EPA anticipates if fully implemented the rule will prevent tens of thousands of serious PFAS-attributable illnesses or deaths,” the agency wrote in a slide […]
White House launches new push to help states remove lead pipes that carry drinking water
WASHINGTON — The White House on Friday announced plans to speed up the use of infrastructure law funds to replace lead pipes in underserved communities, with a focus on Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin beginning this year. The four states, each led by Democratic governors, will be part of what’s called the Lead Service […]
Advocates for Great Lakes hoping for investments to address coastlines, pollution, drinking water
When Joe Biden became president in January of 2020, the Alliance for the Great Lakes made a list of five priorities they felt were needed for environmental investment programs in the Great Lakes. They are: The results of whether these issues will move their way to being fixed is still in the air, with the […]
Ohio House legislation could make Ohio’s bad water problems worse
For the past few years, my firm Scioto Analysis has published a series of studies of Ohio’s Genuine Progress Indicator, a “GDP+” measure that monetizes the impact of environmental damage and external social benefits and costs of nonmarket activity in the state. One of the biggest takeaways we’ve found year after year from doing this […]
As lake trout reappear, a renewed bipartisan focus on the health of the Great Lakes also emerges
This past May, biologists from the New York Department of Environmental Conservation found something that looked quite small and inconsequential to those of us who might only fish in the Great Lakes, but something that was huge and quite important to scientists like them that spend their entire lives staring into the into largest freshwater […]
As Congress tries to regulate ‘forever chemicals,’ local water systems push back
WASHINGTON — Local water utilities worried about getting hit with lawsuits and high cleanup costs are stepping up their lobbying of Congress as lawmakers move to regulate toxic chemicals found in drinking water. The bill, the PFAS Action Act of 2021, has garnered bipartisan support and two Michigan lawmakers, Reps. Debbie Dingell, a Democrat, and Fred Upton, a […]
It’s raining ‘forever chemicals’ in Cleveland. What’s being done to make Ohio water safe?
In April of this year, scientists decided to measure the healthiness of the rainwater falling over the Midwest. One of the places they measured was Cleveland, Ohio. The rain that fell on Cleveland this spring contained a surprisingly high amount of toxic “forever chemicals” known as PFAS, according to scientists at the Integrated Atmospheric Deposition […]
Frustrated local leaders urge Congress to move faster on regulating PFAS
WASHINGTON — Local officials and community leaders on Wednesday pushed Congress to designate toxic chemicals that are contaminating drinking water as hazardous materials, which would trigger federal cleanup standards. In addition, two Democratic senators from Michigan, Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters, introduced legislation that would put additional obligations on the Pentagon to initiate cleanup at […]
White House: Ohio’s infrastructure has ‘systemic lack of investment’
A fact-sheet promoting the Biden administration’s new jobs plan gave Ohio a less than average score on its infrastructure. The profile of Ohio said the state has “suffered from a systemic lack of investment” in areas such as roads and bridges, public transportation, drinking water, housing, broadband, child care and manufacturing. The infrastructure report found […]
Catching our eye 12.4.19
Each day in our newsletter, we are highlighting stories and commentary from other media big and small throughout Ohio and the nation. We will publish this section in The Rundown as well. If you’d like to get this feature directly to your inbox, please sign up for our newsletter here. Catching our eye: Out of darkness comes […]