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STATEMENT: Efficient water heaters will cut pollution, save money, save lives
Statement: New rule will aid PFAS clean-ups
STATEMENT: EPA restricts toxic ‘forever chemicals’ in drinking water
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Statement: Colorado Legislature passes bill to reduce plastic packaging, boost recycling
Building on successful programs in dozens of countries and recent action taken by Maine and Oregon, the Colorado Senate passed on Wednesday a bipartisan producer responsibility bill.
Statement: Congress should pass legislation to protect drinking water from PFAS contamination
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and Rep. Chris Pappas of New Hampshire introduced the Clean Water Standards for PFAS 2.0 Act into the Senate and the House this week. The bill would require the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish limits on how much PFAS chemicals producers can dump into waterways and to set water quality criteria to protect human health.
Consumer advocacy groups launch campaign to get Columbia Sportswear to phase out toxic ‘forever chemicals’
U.S. PIRG Education Fund and NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) launched a campaign on Tuesday calling on outdoor gear and apparel brand Columbia Sportswear to phase out the use of PFAS in its products and supply chains. Last month, the company received low marks in a scorecard report released by the advocacy groups. The report found that Columbia Sportswear has failed to adopt policies that ban PFAS chemicals or provide up-to-date, publicly available information on any ongoing efforts to phase out these toxic chemicals from their products.
Statement: States sue to stop misguided USPS plan to spend billions on gas powered vehicles
Attorneys general from 16 states,the District of Columbia and environmental groups sued the U.S. Postal Service on Thursday to halt purchases of thousands of gas-powered trucks that only get 8.6 ils per gallon, only a small improvement over teh 30-year-old vehicles currently in use.
Statement: Advocates back members of Congress calling for an additional $300 million for electric school buses
United States Sens. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) and Reps. Tony Cárdenas (D-Calif.) and Jahana Hayes (D-Conn.) led a letter on Wednesday requesting $300 million in new funding for electric school buses in the Fiscal Year 2023 budget. The letter also called for additional outreach and efforts to bring zero-emission buses to rural and underserved schools.
Statement: Public health advocates applaud FDA’s proposed rules to end the sale of menthol cigarettes, flavored cigars
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced proposed rules on Thursday that would end the sale of menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars nationwide. The FDA’s action comes after years of outcry from public health officials and advocates about the dangers of these tobacco products.
Statement: Biden administration announces $6.4 billion program to reduce transportation’s climate impacts
The United States Department of Transportation announced on Thursday a new program to spend $6.4 billion over the next five years to reduce climate emissions from the nation’s transportation sector.
Statement: Biden restores robust public and environmental review for infrastructure projects
The Biden administration announced on Tuesday stronger public and environmental review requirements under a bedrock environmental law, the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The move reversed a rollback by the Trump administration of the requirements, which had limited public review of federal infrastructure projects in an effort to shove through the permitting of new freeways, fossil fuel power plants and pipelines.
Interactive map shows widespread lead contamination in schools drinking water
Lead contamination of school drinking water is more pervasive than previously thought, according to testing data from across the nation published on Thursday by Environment America Research & Policy Center and U.S. PIRG Education Fund on a new interactive map. The groups urged public officials to take swift action to “get the lead out” of schools’ drinking water.
U.S. PIRG applauds Biden Administration’s actions on medical debt
Our statement on Vice President Kamala Harris' announced reforms to reduce the impact of medical debt on Americans’ finances.