![]() Those chemicals included fluorinated benzoic salts, fluoroalkyl alcohol substituted polyethylene glycol, fluorosurfactants, meta-perfluoromethylcyclohexane and nonionic fluorosurfactant, which was the most commonly listed. After discussing these chemicals with experts, Physicians for Social Responsibility determined that they are either PFAS or can break down into PFAS. While the group did not find records of the three chemicals being used in fracking - which is something that McEntyre noted in his email - it did find chemicals with related names that had been injected into more than 1,200 wells in six states including New Mexico. Physicians for Social Responsibility further looked at the FracFocus database to gauge the use of those chemicals. Despite concerns about health impacts, the regulators approved the use of those chemicals in fracking. Environmental Protection Agency’s discussions about three chemicals that could break down into a type of PFAS known as PFOA. Physicians for Social Responsibility started with a Freedom of Information Act request looking at the U.S. Outside of the oil and gas industry, NMED can regulate discharges to groundwater for three types of PFAS chemicals: PFOA, PFOS and PFHxS, Hayden said. In an email to NM Political Report, McEntyre said NMOGA pushed for rules requiring fracking fluid disclosure in 2011 that were ultimately adopted by the state’s Oil Conservation Commission. While the environment department does not have the authority to regulate what chemicals are used in fracking, companies are required to report what fluids are used, according to Robert McEntyre, a spokesperson for New Mexico Oil and Gas Association. For example, Hayden said NMED doesn’t have the authority to regulate chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing. New Mexico is currently limited in what it can do to regulate the use of PFAS in oil and gas operations. Department of Defense for the contamination and the litigation is ongoing. These two bases were used in a fire suppressant foam containing PFAS in training exercises. ![]() PFAS has contaminated groundwater near Clovis and Alamogordo in connection to activities at Cannon and Holloman Air Force bases. “We need a comprehensive regulatory umbrella to ensure that the creation, use, and ultimate disposal of PFAS is done in a safe and controlled manner with clear authority for the state to hold polluters accountable,” Hayden said. Related: Governor petitions EPA to list PFAS as hazardous waste New Mexico has petitioned the EPA to list PFAS as a hazardous waste under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. “Ongoing research into uses of PFAS and the prevalence of these persistent chemicals in the environment is essential to support strong regulatory responses at the federal and state levels,” Hayden said. In recent years, there has been growing concern about the potential health impacts of these “forever chemicals,” which do not break down under normal environmental conditions. PFAS chemicals have a broad range of applications and can be found in household objects including non-stick cookware. Physicians for Social Responsibility released a report this week that found PFAS chemicals, also known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or chemicals that could break down into PFAS have been used in fracking operations in 1,200 wells in half a dozen states, including New Mexico. An oil well is pictured, Thursday, March 25, 2021, in Riverside Park in Aztec.Ī report indicating that PFAS chemicals have been used in hydraulic fracturing operations in New Mexico “emphasizes how important it is for regulators to know what is in the industrial wastewater,” Maddy Hayden, a spokesperson for the New Mexico Environment Department told NM Political Report in an email.
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