ASDWA resource provides definition of ‘disadvantaged community’ by state under SDWA

National News
Water Finance and Management ASDWA has announced the launch of its new Environmental Justice webpage. The webpage includes ASDWA’s environmental justice strategy, developed by ASDWA’s members and staff and will guide the association’s work in the future, as well as a variety of resources related to environmental justice and drinking water. Most notably, ASDWA staff worked with members to include a table that provides the text definition of a disadvantaged community for each state, along with the link to where that definition can be found (Intended Use Plans, regulations, statute, or policy). Under the Safe Drinking Water Act, states are responsible for defining what constitutes a disadvantaged community. States use these definitions to make determinations and help prioritize the funds for drinking water infrastructure that are distributed to communities and water…
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EPA Adds Four New PFAS to Toxic Release Inventory

National News, Research
By Joseph Zaleski and Samuel Boxerman; Sidley Energy Blog As part of its continued focus on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) regulations, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has added four PFAS substances to the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) list, including PFBS (perfluorobutane sulfonic acid) and potassium perfluorobutane sulfonate as well as two compounds listed at by their chemical identifier numbers — CASRN 65104-45-2 and CASRN 203743-03-7. EPA’s decision to add these PFAS to the TRI requires facilities that manufacture, process, or otherwise use these PFAS chemicals to include them in annual reports made to EPA pursuant to the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act starting this reporting year. The 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) immediately added 172 PFAS chemicals to the TRI and required annual facility reporting. The NDAA also provided…
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EPA acts to curb air, water pollution in poor communities

National News
By Matthew Daly, AP News WASHINGTON (AP) — The Environmental Protection Agency announced a series of enforcement actions Wednesday to address air pollution, unsafe drinking water and other problems afflicting minority communities in three Gulf Coast states, following a “Journey to Justice” tour by Administrator Michael Regan last fall. The agency will conduct unannounced inspections of chemical plants, refineries and other industrial sites suspected of polluting air and water and causing health problems to nearby residents, Regan said. And it will install air monitoring equipment in Louisiana’s “chemical corridor” to enhance enforcement at chemical and plastics plants between New Orleans and Baton Rouge. The region contains several hotspots where cancer risks are far above national levels. The EPA also issued a notice to the city of Jackson, Mississippi, saying its…
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