"All consumer, industrial, and commercial uses of trichloroethylene would be phased out under a rule the EPA issued Monday for a solvent the agency has long recognized could be harmful when released into the air and water or onto the land.
Adding commercial restrictions to existing environmental regulations, as the Environmental Protection Agency’s rule (RIN 2070–AK83) does, has been a top priority of the Biden administration due to the deaths and illnesses attributed to the chemical in communities like Woburn, Mass., and made famous through a lawsuit, Anderson v. W.R. Grace & Co., featured in the 1998 legal drama, “A Civil Action.” Trichloroethylene (TCE) also is the focus of thousands of lawsuits involving drinking water exposures at Camp Lejeune.
The EPA’s rule requires manufacturers to rapidly phase down production, imports, processing, distribution, and use of trichloroethylene (TCE) for all uses, with the majority of those ending in one year.
A limited number of uses in the workplace will be phased out over a longer period. When longer phaseouts are necessary, manufacturers must protect their workers, EPA said."
Pat Rizzuto reports for Bloomberg Environment December 9, 2024.
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