Take on Toxics

On Friday, a diverse coalition advocating for stronger health protections from the toxic and persistent flame retardant decabromodiphenyl ether (DecaBDE) sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for violating a federal law that requires EPA to take all practicable measures to limit exposure to some of the most dangerous chemicals in commerce. The Yurok Tribe, Alaska Community Action on Toxics, Learning Disabilities Association of America, Consumer Federation of America, and the Center for Environmental Transformation are asking the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to invalidate loopholes in EPA regulations that would expose infants and children, workers, indigenous cultural and subsistence practitioners, and communities across the country to DecaBDE for years to come and frustrate efforts to get the dangerous chemical out of consumer products and the environment. The coalition is represented by the non-profit environmental law firm Earthjustice.

A new report details how Quemetco – the last remaining secondary lead smelter in California – has exploited a failed regulatory structure that does little to protect people and the environment.