Clean water protections flounder in committee as Alaska legislative session draws to a close

Two payments that may tighten laws on the group of chemical substances referred to as PFAS are stalled in committee as Alaska’s legislative session attracts to a detailed. They might simply die on the finish of session — which might ship lawmakers again to sq. one and depart clear water advocates excessive and dry for one more yr.

PFAS have been linked to most cancers, liver injury, fertility issues, bronchial asthma and thyroid illness. Activists rallied for the payments on the Alaska State Capitol final week.

“We predict it’s excessive time that these payments be handed to guard our Alaska communities,” mentioned Pamela Miller, director of Alaska Group Motion on Toxics. “There are communities from the North Slope of Alaska, all the way in which down by Southeast which have contaminated consuming water due to this dispersive use of those chemical substances in industrial firefighting foams, used on airports and on navy bases.”

Sara Siqiñiq Thomas joined the rally to advocate for her hometown of Utqiaġvik the place firefighting foams at a naval base contaminated consuming water at Imikpuk Lake.

“I do know too many individuals who’ve handed away from most cancers of their 20s, individuals who have been on thyroid remedy since their teenagers, issues that aren’t regular and we’re seeing method an excessive amount of of it,” she mentioned.

These foams are additionally the supply of contamination round a state-run airport in Gustavus, the place the state provides bottled water to residents like Jo Ann Lesh whose wells have been poisoned with poisonous runoff.

“I’m the face of it. I’m the face of PFAS,” she mentioned.

Lesh and her husband ran an inn at what’s mainly the gateway to Glacier Bay Nationwide Park for years, the place they served patrons contemporary meals from their backyard. She mentioned discovering the water and soil on their property is contaminated was devastating.

“We moved there for every little thing to be pristine and every little thing is now polluted,” she mentioned.

Senator Jesse Kiehl represents Gustavus and he’s been engaged on PFAS laws since he was elected. He’s one of many sponsors of Senate Invoice 121, which might put tighter regulation on PFAS within the state and restrict using firefighting foams which can be recognized to include PFAS. He says the state’s regulatory company — the Division of Environmental Conservation — doesn’t do sufficient to guard Alaskans from PFAS.

“The issue of those PFAS chemical substances, these are ceaselessly chemical substances. They don’t break down. They don’t go away. And they’re in Alaskans’ consuming water,” he mentioned.

He says Senate Invoice 121 and its companion invoice Home Invoice 171 would do the naked minimal to guard Alaskans’ consuming water and make sure the poisonous firefighting foams aren’t extensively used within the state any longer.

He says there’s cash to enact their laws within the federal infrastructure invoice.

The state’s Division of Environmental Conservation raised quite a few considerations concerning the laws. DEC as soon as regulated PFAS to greater requirements however rolled them again following political strain.

Tiffany Larson directs the division of Spill Prevention and Response at DEC. She says the state defers to the federal authorities — particularly the Environmental Safety Company — on the query of PFAS.

“We are going to comply with EPA once they come out with new consuming water requirements,” she mentioned. “As a result of they’ve the assets and have been in a position to make investments that type of effort into that.”

However Consultant Hannan says the federal authorities isn’t shifting quick sufficient.

“We must always not and can’t afford, for our well being, to attend for the federal motion to scrub this up,” she mentioned.

It could be troublesome to go the payments within the remaining hours of the legislative session. In the event that they don’t go, legislators say they may attempt once more subsequent yr.