- The U.S. EPA says it will defend its rule designating certain PFAS as hazardous substances under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, according to a court document filed by the Justice Department on behalf of the EPA on Wednesday.
- The hazardous substance designation for two types of PFAS — PFOS and PFOA — was first set last year under the Biden administration. The National Waste & Recycling Association and other groups sued the EPA in 2024 over the matter, saying the designation unfairly exposes them to liability expenses because they are “passive receivers” that do not have control over PFAS-laden materials that enter their facilities.
- The EPA also said it intends to develop a new rule on how it might craft any future hazardous substance designations under CERCLA, including cost considerations. “The best, most enduring solution to this issue is a statutory fix to protect passive receivers from liability, which EPA would follow to the letter of the law,” the agency said.
EPA announces intent to defend PFAS hazardous substance designation | Waste Dive
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Allianz Stadium in London, UK, has become the first in the country to adopt a plastic-free and home-compostable drinks carrier at the recent England XV versus France XV rugby match. The rugby ball-shaped drinks carrier was developed by Notpla, a provider of seaweed packaging.
“We’re proud to work with Notpla to deliver practical, visible steps toward a more sustainable matchday and event experience. This new drinks carrier is just one more example of how these changes, delivered at scale, can make a big difference for our fans and the planet,” says Gary Cargill, director of Catering Services, Twickenham Experience, at Allianz Stadium.
“This kind of collaboration — with a venue willing to lead and a caterer committed to action — is how we make plastic-free stadiums a reality and really tackle the problem of single-use plastics head-on.
Richard Stover, PhD, and the Center for Biological Diversity counted nearly 8,000 significant incidents, between 1986 and 2014, in records of the pipeline safety administration. By “significant” they mean causing injury, death, damages exceeding $50,000 in value, a loss of 5 barrels of highly volatile substances, 50 barrels of other liquids or there was an explosion. There have been more than 500 human deaths and 2,300 injuries through-out that period. The number of plant and animal casualties is much higher.
Though most pipeline failures occur where there is a long history of development, they occur through-out the Lower 48. Texas is the worst offender, with 1657 incidents. California had 621 and 48 deaths.
The leading causes of incidents are excavation damages (24.3%), corrosion (18.2%) and equipment failure (17.1%).
Last week, we held the latest instalment of the PEFC alignment to EUDR webinar series, sharing news from the European Commission as well as the roll out of the new PEFC EUDR compliance support solution. With our PEFC experts Hubert Inhaizer (Sustainable Forest Management), Maja Drca (EU Affairs), Marta Martínez Pardo (Chain of Custody), and Rob Shaw (Data and Integrity), we touched on the alignment of our Sustainable Forest Management benchmark, the PEFC EUDR DDS module, partnerships with technology experts to ensure data management, and the latest new from the Commission. If you missed the webinar, you can see the recording at: https://pefc.org/news/on-the-path-to-eudr-alignment-see-our-webinar-recording