Michigan members of Congress are pressing the Biden administration to do more to address PFAS contamination.
PFAS are a family of industrial chemicals that have been linked to a wide range of human health problems.
A letter from the Congressional PFAS Task Force is asking for, among other things, the creation of a new national drinking water standard for PFAS.
The task force also wants more cooperation from federal agencies.
Representative Fred Upton (R-St. Joseph) is particularly tired of one federal agency.
“We need EPA to help us. Not to stonewall us,” says Upton.
The Department of Defense has also been criticized for its tendency to study the PFAS problem at current and former bases rather than to act swiftly to clean up contamination.
Representative Dan Kildee (D-Flint) is the task force co-chair. He says this is a problem for both Congress and the President to solve.
“We need to provide the tools legislatively,” says Kildee. “But we need the administration to use those tools.”
The Congressional PFAS Task Force has grown to more than 55 members in the past two years.
The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy lists more than 150 locations contaminated with PFAS.
