Experts raise concerns over EPA weakening protections against 'forever chemicals' in drinking water

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- The Environmental Protection Agency has proposed a plan to roll back regulations on pollutants known as "forever chemicals" in the nation's drinking water.

It comes against the backdrop of a senate hearing, where some angry lawmakers accused the EPA's new director of putting the country's health at risk.

As senior scientist for the San Francisco Estuary Institute, Rebecca Sutton, Ph.D., has spent decades pulling microplastics from San Francisco Bay and studying the effects of so-called "forever chemicals" in the lab.

"So, that means they can build up in the bodies of people and wildlife over time. And it turns out they're highly toxic. So even trace exposures can lead to some pretty serious health effects, including cancer," Sutton said.

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Similar findings have environmental groups across the country criticizing a proposal by the Trump EPA to roll back regulations designed to remove forever chemicals from the nations drinking water. The deadline for removing the substances, broadly known as PFAS chemicals, would be extended to 2031. Meanwhile, regulations for a separate chemical class with names like GenX, and PFNA would be temporarily eliminated.

David Lewis is with the nonprofit Save the Bay.

"The Environmental Protection Agency -- since the Nixon administration created it -- has been the first line of defense in protecting public health and our environment from hazardous chemicals, hazardous waste, and trying to keep our water and air clean, so that we can live and survive and thrive. So, dismantling these cornerstone laws and protections for all of us is a big mistake," Lewis said.

During a heated senate hearing this morning, democratic lawmakers grilled new EPA head Lee Zeldin on the Trump administrations environmental priorities.

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"It seems to me the Trump administration's entire vision for your agency amounts to burn it down," said Sen. Patricia Murray of Washington state.

Zelden answered back, claiming early environmental accomplishments.

"I would encourage you to read the announcement that we put out the morning of the president's 100th day that has 100 environmental wins from the first 100 days of the Trump presidency. I don't know if you've had an opportunity to read it yet, Zelden said.

But others pointed to the freezing of environmental grants, which have fallen heavily on nonprofits here in the Bay Area, along with concerns about potentially slow-walking EPA programs approved by congress, like restoration work on San Francisco Bay.

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Sen. Jeff Merkley of Oregon accused the administration of purposely violating the law.

"We're going to treat these laws as suggestions. We're going to freeze these funds for programs we don't like or regions we don't like or congressional districts we don't," Merkley said.

Back in the Bay Area, environmental groups are turning to the state--which already has passed its own tougher restrictions on forever chemicals--and hoping to raise public concern among the estimated 158 million Americans who come in contact with PFAS in their drinking water.

"The EPA has been regulating hazardous chemicals and should be regulating PFAs, should be eliminating this from products and also helping us tackle PFAs and microplastics in all the different sources, so that less of it gets into our water, less of it gets into our bodies," Lewis said.

A number of groups are suing the EPA point to protections in the Safe Drinking Water Act, barring the agency from repealing or weakening drinking water standards.