Chemical Safety Standards
For some months, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee has been working on an overhaul of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), the primary Federal law governing chemical safety standards. The issue recently took on new urgency, however, in the wake of a chemical spill that contaminated the water supply in much of West Virginia. On January 9, 7,500 gallons of coal-cleaning chemicals seeped into the Elk River in Charleston, West Virginia, 1.5 miles upstream from the region’s water treatment plant. The spill left 300,000 people unable to use their water supply and unswered questions about the longterms health…
