skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Wednesday, September 27, 2023

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Progressives call push to change Constitution "risky," Judge rules Donald Trump defrauded banks, insurers while building real estate empire; new report compares ways NY can get cleaner air, help disadvantaged communities.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Senate leaders advance a plan to avoid a government shutdown, an elections official argues AI could be a threat to democracy and voting rights advocates look to states like Arizona to rally young Latino voters.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

A small fire department in rural Indiana is determined not to fail new moms and babies, the growing election denial movement has caused voting districts to change procedures and autumn promises spectacular scenery along America's rural byways.

NY Enacts New PFAS Testing, Notification Law

play audio
Play

Friday, January 7, 2022   

A new law on the books in New York establishes the most comprehensive drinking-water testing and notification program in the nation for Perfluorinated and Polyfluorinated Substances (PFAS), substances known as "forever chemicals."

Rob Hayes, director of clean water for Environmental Advocates NY, said every water utility across the state will have to test for the nearly two dozen toxic chemicals on the state's first list of emerging contaminants.

He pointed out notifications will be sent to the public if unsafe levels are detected in drinking water.

"New Yorkers are about to finally find out what's in their water and if they're being exposed to toxic PFAS chemicals," Hayes explained. "We're going to see testing, hopefully starting this year, and then, there will be regular testing happening for new contaminants every so often after that."

High exposure to PFAS chemicals has been found to negatively impact human health and the environment. Backers of the new law urged the state Department of Health to set notification levels for low amounts of every emerging contaminant listed.

Clean-water advocacy groups have been pushing for transparency about toxic chemicals for more than four years.

Manna Jo Greene, environmental action director for Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, said the legislation ties in with the new Green Amendment voters overwhelmingly passed on the November ballot.

"It's an actual amendment to the New York State Constitution that guarantees the right to clean air, clean water and a healthy environment," Greene outlined. "This is a specific way to implement and ensure those rights."

In recent years, New York has enacted several bills to eliminate the use of PFAS chemicals in products like firefighting foam and food packaging. Hayes hopes to see even more efforts to ban them in other products.

"Because really, if we want to prevent water contamination, we have to stop these chemicals at the source," Hayes contended. "When we put them into products, they end up in our environment, and they put public health at risk."

He noted a second list, including 14 more chemicals as emerging contaminants will be published in coming years. Under the law, the New York Department of Health must update the list of emerging contaminants at least every three years.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
Conservative legal groups are calling for a constitutional convention as early as 2025. (Kasia Biel/Adobestock)

Social Issues

play sound

Progressive groups are speaking out against the idea of a constitutional convention, warning it could be used to impose conservative policies on …


Health and Wellness

play sound

Today is National Gay Men's HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, and Nevada is one of the 10 states with the highest HIV infection rates. In 2021, more than 11,00…

Environment

play sound

The current Farm Bill expires Sept. 30 and with a looming government shutdown, reauthorization does not appear imminent. Wisconsin farm groups say …


More than thirty states and the District of Columbia have decriminalized low-level cannabis possession offenses, according to The Marijuana Policy Project. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Kentuckians continue to be charged, jailed and fined for cannabis-related offenses at high rates, despite dramatic shifts in public opinion, …

Environment

play sound

Three conservation groups have sued to stop a large logging project near Yellowstone National Park they say threatens endangered species in Montana…

A $27 billion fund managed by the Environmental Protection Agency is designed to help states and local communities construct sustainable green projects to fight climate change and reduce greenhouse gases. (Adobe Stock/AI)

Environment

play sound

Elected officials in New York and across the country are urging state and local governments to use new funding available through the Environmental Pro…

Environment

play sound

A new poll found Pennsylvania Republican voters want political candidates to prioritize preserving and growing manufacturing including tariffs in the …

play sound

New polling data showed most Ohio Republican voters say small-town factory jobs are not coming back, and want their elected representatives to …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021