EPA stalls nationwide microplastic testing as scientists warn of health risks
Scientists say microplastics threaten human health, but the EPA has delayed a national monitoring program for tap water.
On August 8, an international team of scientists released a Lancet editorial asserting that plastics damage human health and the environment at every stage of their lifecycle, citing over 16,000 chemicals such as phthalates, bisphenols and PFAS. They emphasize that micro- and nanoplastics, now detected from the deep ocean to Arctic ice and in human lungs, blood and organs, are likely to double by 2040 if pollution is not curbed.
In the United States, tap water shows some of the highest microplastic concentrations worldwide, yet conventional treatment cannot fully remove them. Although Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced a $144 million project to study microplastics in the human body, the EPA left microplastics off the draft list of contaminants utilities must monitor, claiming current testing is not feasible.
Trisha Vaidyanathan of Beyond Plastics criticized the agency for using research gaps as an excuse and urged immediate nationwide monitoring and standards. Governors from seven states had earlier petitioned for mandatory testing, but their request was rejected.
Why it matters
Without federal monitoring, Americans may continue drinking water contaminated with harmful microplastics.
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