Environmental Industry Updates
The Latest News on Scientific and Regulatory Updates from Merit Laboratories
The PFAS reporting period under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) has been extended six months. The U.S EPA announced direct final and parallel proposed rules that delay the reporting period for the new TSCA PFAS requirement. Previously scheduled to begin the reporting period on November 12, 2024, the beginning of the reporting period is now delayed until July 2025.
The U.S. Army is joining forces with the U.S. EPA to target a new enemy: PFAS contamination in drinking water. The joint EPA-Army program announced in July will be focused on the sample collection and laboratory testing of private drinking water wells near nine army installations for PFAS. The program will be focused on identifying the potential impact of PFAS migration from installations to contaminate drinking water wells of nearby residents.
The U.S. EPA recently finalized a rule that will provide the largest-ever dataset of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) manufactured and used in the United States. The finalized reporting rule under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) is a statutory requirement with the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA - FY2020).
Chemours Company is the recipient of the U.S. EPA’s first-ever enforcement action for PFAS discharges with the Clean Water Act (CWA). The EPA is ordering Chemours Company to take corrective measures to address pollution from PFAS in stormwater and effluent discharges for a facility near Parkersburg, West Virginia. The EPA stated that discharge levels of PFAS exceed the levels established in the facility’s CWA permit. In an administrative compliance order on consent (AOC) issued by the agency…
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has launched interactive PFAS Analytic Tools to integrate data about PFAS reporting, testing, and occurrences in communities, making it easier to evaluate the collective PFAS information from nearly a dozen different databases that include relevant information.
The U.S. EPA officially approved Merit Laboratories to perform analytical laboratory testing for PFAS compounds as part of the fifth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UMCR5). As part of UCMR5, Merit Laboratories is approved for analytical methods EPA 533 and EPA 537.1. UCMR 5 includes all 29 PFAS compounds that are within the scope of EPA Methods 533 and 537.1.
The U.S. EPA has published the Fifth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 5). UCMR 5 requires sample collection for 30 chemical contaminants between 2023 and 2025 using analytical methods developed by EPA and consensus organizations. This action provides EPA and other interested parties with scientifically valid data on the national presence of these contaminants in drinking water. PFAS are included in the UCMR.
