White House Protects Americans From Forever Chemicals By Studying Them Later

WASHINGTON—A nationwide survey designed to identify which industries discharge PFAS into public wastewater systems has spent nearly two years awaiting White House approval, giving forever chemicals a regulatory timeline suited to their name.

The Environmental Protection Agency submitted the information request to the Office of Management and Budget in October 2024. A former OMB official told the Associated Press that reviews typically take about 60 days. The proposed study remains pending after roughly twenty-three months, an extended examination of whether the government should begin examining what is already entering rivers, soil and treated sewage sludge.

EPA planned to question about 400 large public treatment plants and select 200 to 300 for sampling. Those plants would help identify as many as 2,000 industrial users whose discharges could be tested. The agency’s own project page says the resulting national data would help it determine which industries merit further study or regulation. Knowing who releases the chemicals is an early step, which makes postponing the knowledge an efficient way to avoid all later steps too.

PFAS have been linked by researchers to certain cancers, developmental harm in children, reduced vaccine response and other health problems. Ordinary wastewater plants generally cannot remove them, and contaminated biosolids may be spread on farm fields. The administration says it remains committed to a comprehensive PFAS strategy and gold-standard science. The standard has apparently added a lengthy aging requirement before any samples are collected.

The survey materials, questionnaire and sampling plan are ready. The contaminants are also ready and require no approval to continue downstream.