Jackson Quinn, foreground, places a bottle contains a PFAS water sample into a rotator, Wednesday, April 10, 2024, at a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency lab in Cincinnati. The Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday announced its first-ever limits for several common types of PFAS, the so-called "forever chemicals," in drinking water. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

WASHINGTON — The Environmental Protection Agency on Friday designated two forever chemicals that have been used in cookware, carpets and firefighting foams as hazardous substances, an action intended to ensure quicker cleanup of the toxic compounds and require industries and others responsible for contamination to pay for its removal.

Designation as a hazardous substance under the Superfund law doesn’t ban the chemicals, known as PFOA and PFOS. But it requires that releases of the chemicals into soil or water be reported to federal, state or tribal officials if they meet or exceed certain levels. The EPA then may require cleanups to protect public health and recover costs that can reach tens of millions of dollars.

PFOA and PFOS have been voluntarily phased out by U.S. manufacturers but are still in limited use and remain in the environment because they do not degrade over time. The compounds are part of a larger cluster of forever chemicals known as PFAS that have been used since the 1940s in industry and consumer products including nonstick frying pans, water-repellent sports gear, stain-resistant rugs and cosmetics.

Wood and Washington counties are at ground zero in the forever chemicals issue.

PFOA, also known as C8, was once used in making Teflon at the Washington Works plant formerly owned by DuPont. It has been detected in measurable amounts in several local private and public water systems where DuPont and its spinoff company Chemours financed the installation of filtering systems.

Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., speaks to reporters following the Republican policy meeting, at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, March 20, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

The term PFAS is short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. The chemicals can accumulate and persist in the human body for long periods. Evidence from animal and human studies indicates that exposure to PFOA or PFOS may lead to cancer or other health problems, including liver and heart damage and developmental problems in infants and children.

President Joe Biden’s administration “understands the threat that forever chemicals pose to the health of families across the country,” EPA Administrator Michael Regan said. “Designating these chemicals under our Superfund authority will allow EPA to address more contaminated sites, take earlier action and expedite cleanups — all while ensuring polluters pay for the costs to clean up pollution threatening the health of communities.”

The final rule issued Friday follows strict limits set by the EPA on certain PFAS in drinking water that will require utilities to reduce them to the lowest level they can be reliably measured. Officials say the drinking water rule, announced April 10, will reduce exposure for 100 million people and help prevent thousands of illnesses, including cancers.

The American Chemistry Council, which represents the chemical industry, said it strongly oppose the EPA’s action and believes it “will undermine overall remediation efforts” for PFAS contamination.

The Superfund law “is an expensive, ineffective and unworkable means to achieve remediation for these chemicals,” the group said in a statement Friday. The 1980 law “is fraught with unintended consequences and will likely result in extensive, unnecessary delays for cleanups,” the chemistry council said, adding that there are more effective and timely means to clean up PFAS sites “through existing regulatory processes.”

Besides the final rule, the EPA issued a notice clarifying that the agency will focus enforcement efforts on businesses and people who significantly contribute to the release of PFAS chemicals into the environment, including companies that have manufactured PFAS or used it in the manufacturing process, as well as federal agencies and other responsible groups.

PFAS used in firefighting foam has tainted groundwater on and near military bases and other locations where it’s used in training exercises.

The Superfund law allows the EPA to clean up contaminated sites across the country and forces parties responsible for the contamination to either perform cleanups or reimburse the government for EPA-led cleanup work. When no responsible party can be identified, Superfund gives the EPA money and authority to clean up contaminated sites.

The EPA’s action follows a report by the National Academies of Science that calls PFAS a serious public health threat in the U.S. and worldwide. The EPA said in 2022 that PFOA and PFOS are more dangerous than previously thought and pose health risks even at levels so low they cannot currently be detected.

Water utilities, fire departments and other groups had complained that an earlier EPA proposal could have imposed unfair costs on them without defined cleanup standards.

The result of the EPA decision could put impact those who had nothing to do with causing the problem, said Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., a ranking member of the Senate’s Environment and Public Works Committee.

This is the first time the EPA has designated two legacy per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances known as forever chemicals as hazardous substances under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act without first doing so under another environmental statute, she said.

“The EPA’s unprecedented decision today puts local communities and ratepayers on the hook for PFAS contamination they had nothing to do with in the first place,” she said. “Along with many others in Congress, I have repeatedly warned the EPA about the unintended consequences stemming from this rule, which will have disproportionate impacts on providers of essential public services such as water and waste utilities, airports, farmers and ranchers, and fire departments.

“Today’s ill-advised decision underscores the urgent need for Congress to act,” Capito said. “We must pass legislation to safeguard American ratepayers from the financial burden imposed by this misguided rule.”