Summary

The EPA has banned TCE and perc, toxic chemicals linked to cancer, liver and kidney damage, and other severe health issues.

Widely used in dry cleaning, degreasers, and consumer products, these substances have contaminated groundwater and air, particularly near military bases.

The ban, which reverses Trump-era rollbacks and surpasses Obama-era proposals, has been welcomed by public health advocates but opposed by industry groups.

The four-year timeline to undo the ban makes it difficult for the incoming Trump administration to reverse, despite its intent to loosen chemical regulations.

  • anon6789@lemmy.world
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    13 hours ago

    Spent a year working at a dry cleaners. The first time I opened that machine and got blasted in the face with perc vapors I imagined it must be like being exposed on a planet with a methane atmosphere. That is some harsh stuff. After that job I inventoried hazardous chemicals at a pharma research site, and nothing they had hit my lungs and eyes like perc. The labs at least had good ventilation. Dry cleaning is a harsh business. It was disgusting and dangerous in all kinds of ways no other job I’ve had has been.

  • queermunist she/her
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    15 hours ago

    Good job waiting until the last fucking minute. Now reversing this decision will be extremely simple because the new rule barely had time to take effect.

    This is a PR move.

      • Cornelius_Wangenheim@lemmy.world
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        11 hours ago

        The rulemaking process has tons of mandatory waiting periods for feedback. If they didn’t follow them to a T, some Trump judge will have an easy time reversing it.

          • Doomsider@lemmy.world
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            4 hours ago

            These chemicals where created after the Constitution was written. Therefore my originalist reading says we cannot ban them since our forefathers did not.

      • xmunk@sh.itjust.works
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        14 hours ago

        Because both our political parties are pieces of shit (not equally shitty - one is clearly shittier) and neither one is motivated to actually improve the life of most Americans.

    • jbk@discuss.tchncs.de
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      14 hours ago

      The ban would take about four years to undo, making it difficult for the Trump administration to reverse.

      • queermunist she/her
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        13 hours ago

        Am I supposed to believe that? They can just break the law. They control the Court.

        The point of doing this years ago would be to get people used to the ban, so it’d already be locked in by inertia. Companies would have already made the shift and the public would be used to these protections.

        This is politics, not bureaucracy.

    • skuzz@discuss.tchncs.de
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      11 hours ago

      I wanted to reply and add on to the other comments about the generalized horsefuckery of politics before rulemaking, but everyone hit the bases real well!

    • TimLovesTech (AuDHD)(he/him)@badatbeing.social
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      16 hours ago

      Agreed. I like where their head is, but when you’re working with people trying to raze the government to the ground instead of actually governing, good luck enforcing anything.

    • xmunk@sh.itjust.works
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      14 hours ago

      In theory, if this ban wasn’t happening at the last moment, it might force manufacturers to transition off of current processes and they might simply not transition back because it’d be too expensive.

      Given the short time frame most of those manufacturers would probably just prefer to suspend business until Trump takes office.

      • ℍ𝕂-𝟞𝟝@sopuli.xyz
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        12 hours ago

        You mean eat the fines at best, not suspend business.

        At best. Most likely they will get bogged down in court before a Trump judge rules the regulation unconstitutional.