Trump administration wants to rescind limits on 'forever chemicals' set last year, federal court motion shows

The Trump administration wants to rescind strict federal limits on four "forever chemicals" in drinking water established last year, according to a motion filed in federal court. The administration previously said it would relax rules set by the Environmental Protection Agency during the Biden administration for two more compounds, extending the deadlines for water suppliers to comply.

The motion filed Thursday is the latest in a series of rollbacks in environmental regulations undertaken in the first eight months of the Trump administration.

"The EPA’s announcement is a big win for corporate polluters," said Robert Hayes, a clean water expert at Environmental Advocates NY. He said the rollback would leave New Yorkers "at risk of exposure to toxic PFAS chemicals every time they turn on the tap."

Here’s what to know about the administration’s move, and how it could affect Long Island.

Why are PFAS chemicals a concern?

PFAS — or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances — are found in thousands of industrial and consumer products, from nonstick pans and water-resistant clothes to firefighting foam and artificial turf, to shampoo and dental floss. The compounds persist in surface waters and soils, where they poison wildlife and farm animals, and in the tissues of humans and other animals — thus the term "forever chemicals."

Public health officials have determined that these compounds are toxic even in minute amounts, leading to a range of health problems including kidney, testicular and breast cancers, fertility problems and decreased immunity, according to multiple peer-reviewed studies.

What is the rule on PFAS now?

In April 2024 the Biden administration adopted strict limits on six PFAS chemicals in drinking water, alone or in combinations. For PFOA and PFOS, the federal limit is 4 parts per trillion; for the others the limit is 10 parts per trillion. Water suppliers were given until 2029 to comply.

Who is challenging those regulations?

Soon after the regulations were finalized, industry groups representing water suppliers, the chemical industry, and Chemours, a large PFAS manufacturer, challenged them in court. Their lawsuit argued, among other things, that the EPA’s methods for determining the limits for four of the compounds were unscientific and did not follow the required procedures and should therefore be reversed.

What is the Trump administration doing now?

After a series of requests for pauses on the lawsuit during the spring and summer, the Trump administration filed a motion Friday saying, "EPA agrees with petitioners that parts of the rulemaking process were unlawful." The EPA therefore asked the court to vacate the regulations for four of the regulated PFAS chemicals: PFNA, PFHxS, HFPO-DA and, PFBS.

The government’s motion says that the EPA does plan to defend the limits for PFOA and PFOS, which it says were determined properly, in adherence to the Safe Drinking Water Act, the law that authorizes the EPA to set the limits.

But the EPA announced in May that it planned to delay the deadline for compliance for those two compounds by two years, to 2031.

Will Long Island lose protection from these compounds?

Five years ago, New York State established a limit for PFOA and PFOS in drinking water at 10 parts per trillion. The federal standards were lower, so undermining the federal limit will mean some Long Islanders could be exposed to higher levels of these toxic chemicals.

There is no state limit for the other four compounds that are regulated under Biden’s rule.

According to a Newsday analysis earlier this year, seven of the 36 Long Island districts that had submitted data reported annual averages that exceeded the federal limits for at least one of the regulated compounds.

Across the state, 189 water districts, serving more than 1 million New Yorkers, detected PFAS at levels that were below state limits but above the federal limits, according to an analysis by the Environmental Working Group and Citizens Campaign for the Environment. Those people could be exposed to more chemicals for a longer period if the Trump administration gets its way.

Still, many Long Island water suppliers have already installed expensive water treatment systems to remove PFAS, and several have previously told Newsday that their aim is to remove PFAS to nondetectable levels — not just to comply with the state standard.

What happens next?

The court would have to approve the Trump administration’s request, and it’s unclear if that will happen.

More than a dozen local and national nonprofit groups, three toxicologists and 17 states, including New York, and the District of Columbia, submitted briefs in support of the regulations and are opposing the government’s efforts to reverse the limits.