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FakeNoose
FakeNoose's Journal
FakeNoose's Journal
January 26, 2023
Caption: Speaker of the House Mark Rozzi on Wednesday, Jan. 25, at Simmons Auditorium, Carnegie Mellon University, Tepper School of Business, Oakland. Photo Credit: John Colombo/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
(link) https://www.post-gazette.com/news/politics-state/2023/01/25/mark-rozzi-pa-house-speaker-listening-tour-pittsburgh-cmu/stories/202301250101
Subhead: The state House Speaker Mark Rozzi kicked off his cross-state 'listening tour' with a stop at Carnegie Mellon University.
- more at link -
The gridlock in Harrisburg came to Pittsburgh for a night
Caption: Speaker of the House Mark Rozzi on Wednesday, Jan. 25, at Simmons Auditorium, Carnegie Mellon University, Tepper School of Business, Oakland. Photo Credit: John Colombo/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
(link) https://www.post-gazette.com/news/politics-state/2023/01/25/mark-rozzi-pa-house-speaker-listening-tour-pittsburgh-cmu/stories/202301250101
Subhead: The state House Speaker Mark Rozzi kicked off his cross-state 'listening tour' with a stop at Carnegie Mellon University.
With the state Capitol at a total standstill, Pennsylvania House Speaker Mark Rozzi traded Harrisburg for Pittsburgh on Wednesday.
The Berks County Democrat kicked off his cross-state “listening tour” with an evening stop at Carnegie Mellon University, a day after he adjourned the House until Feb. 27. That move, which followed weeks of uncertainty over who would control the lower chamber, effectively froze the entire General Assembly until Allegheny County voters cast ballots in three House races next month — special elections widely expected to seal a razor-thin Democratic majority.
- snip -
More than 80 people turned out for the session on Wednesday [Jan. 25, 2023] at Carnegie Mellon. After the session, Mr. Rozzi told reporters he’s willing to recall the House sooner than Feb. 27 if lawmakers reach compromises on House rules and the statute of limitations. He called it “disgusting and shameless” to couple the child sexual abuse issue with a voter ID proposal.
“If it gets on the ballot, it’s going to be on the ballot by itself, not with these other constitutional amendments,” Mr. Rozzi said of the window for litigation. A longtime advocate for the idea, he has told of being raped by a Catholic priest when he was 13.
Residents who came to the event encouraged more bipartisan cooperation and making the legislative process more transparent.
The Berks County Democrat kicked off his cross-state “listening tour” with an evening stop at Carnegie Mellon University, a day after he adjourned the House until Feb. 27. That move, which followed weeks of uncertainty over who would control the lower chamber, effectively froze the entire General Assembly until Allegheny County voters cast ballots in three House races next month — special elections widely expected to seal a razor-thin Democratic majority.
- snip -
More than 80 people turned out for the session on Wednesday [Jan. 25, 2023] at Carnegie Mellon. After the session, Mr. Rozzi told reporters he’s willing to recall the House sooner than Feb. 27 if lawmakers reach compromises on House rules and the statute of limitations. He called it “disgusting and shameless” to couple the child sexual abuse issue with a voter ID proposal.
“If it gets on the ballot, it’s going to be on the ballot by itself, not with these other constitutional amendments,” Mr. Rozzi said of the window for litigation. A longtime advocate for the idea, he has told of being raped by a Catholic priest when he was 13.
Residents who came to the event encouraged more bipartisan cooperation and making the legislative process more transparent.
- more at link -
January 25, 2023
- more at link -
Lawsuits are coming. This is total negligence on the school administrators. Also, how negligent are the boy's parents? He got that gun from somewhere - probably his own home.
Lawyer: Adminstrators were warned 3 times the day boy shot teacher at Virginia school
Source: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (AP news story)
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — Concerned staff warned administrators at a Virginia elementary school three times that a 6-year-old boy had a gun and was threatening other students in the hours before he shot and wounded a teacher, but the administration “was paralyzed by apathy” and didn’t call police, remove the boy from class or lock down the school, the wounded teacher's lawyer said Wednesday.
Diane Toscano, an attorney for Abigail Zwerner, said during a news conference that she has notified the school board in Newport News that the 25-year-old teacher at Richneck Elementary School plans to sue the school district over the Jan. 6 shooting, which left Ms. Zwerner with serious injuries.
“On that day, over the course of a few hours, three different times — three times — school administration was warned by concerned teachers and employees that the boy had a gun on him at the school and was threatening people. But the administration could not be bothered,” Ms. Toscano said.
She said that Ms. Zwerner first went to an administrator at around 11:15 a.m. on the day of the shooting and said the boy had threatened to beat up another child, but no action was taken.
Read more: https://www.post-gazette.com/news/crime-courts/2023/01/25/newport-news-virginia-abigail-zwerner-us-shooting-richneck-elementary/stories/202301250086
- more at link -
Lawsuits are coming. This is total negligence on the school administrators. Also, how negligent are the boy's parents? He got that gun from somewhere - probably his own home.
January 24, 2023
(link) https://www.post-gazette.com/news/politics-state/2023/01/24/pa-state-constitution-amendment-abuse-survivors-rep-jim-gregory-house-republicans-rozzi/stories/202301240100
- more at link -
If only Rep. Jim Gregory had spoken up last year when former Governor Tom Wolf demanded that the proposed constitution amendments be unbundled. Why didn't Rep. Gregory say anything then?
These amendments are important issues - they cannot all be thrown into a minor primary election where Pennsylvania voters rarely participate. Each amendment is a weighty decision that should be discussed and voted on separately by all Pennsylvania voters. The Repukes are still trying to ram these through with as little notice as possible.
Thank you Jim Gregory, and I hope it's not too late.
GOP Lawmaker, himself an abuse survivor, asks party to unbundle constitutional amendments
(link) https://www.post-gazette.com/news/politics-state/2023/01/24/pa-state-constitution-amendment-abuse-survivors-rep-jim-gregory-house-republicans-rozzi/stories/202301240100
HARRISBURG — A Pennsylvania survivor-turned-lawmaker asked his fellow Republicans to unbundle three constitutional amendments this week to ensure statute of limitations reform ends up on the May primary ballot.
State Rep. Jim Gregory, R-Blair, pleaded with the House Republican Policy Committee on Monday to separate the issue from two other amendments — voter ID and regulatory reform — that Democrats reject. During his gripping testimony, Mr. Gregory detailed the lifelong impact he and other survivors face — including his own brother, who died of a cocaine overdose in the 1980s.
“We found out years later that he had shared with my sister, eight years younger, unbeknownst to all of us, that he had been sexually abused at 15 by a 30-year-old man who befriended my family and took him to the local racetrack because my brother liked to watch the races,” Mr. Gregory said.
“That was many years ago, but when I’m here today, I can at least go home to my dad and say that he didn’t die in vain, that I can talk for him,” he added.
Mr. Gregory, along with House Speaker Mark Rozzi, D-Berks, sponsored a constitutional amendment in 2021 to open a two-year window in which adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse could sue their perpetrators in civil court.
State Rep. Jim Gregory, R-Blair, pleaded with the House Republican Policy Committee on Monday to separate the issue from two other amendments — voter ID and regulatory reform — that Democrats reject. During his gripping testimony, Mr. Gregory detailed the lifelong impact he and other survivors face — including his own brother, who died of a cocaine overdose in the 1980s.
“We found out years later that he had shared with my sister, eight years younger, unbeknownst to all of us, that he had been sexually abused at 15 by a 30-year-old man who befriended my family and took him to the local racetrack because my brother liked to watch the races,” Mr. Gregory said.
“That was many years ago, but when I’m here today, I can at least go home to my dad and say that he didn’t die in vain, that I can talk for him,” he added.
Mr. Gregory, along with House Speaker Mark Rozzi, D-Berks, sponsored a constitutional amendment in 2021 to open a two-year window in which adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse could sue their perpetrators in civil court.
- more at link -
If only Rep. Jim Gregory had spoken up last year when former Governor Tom Wolf demanded that the proposed constitution amendments be unbundled. Why didn't Rep. Gregory say anything then?
These amendments are important issues - they cannot all be thrown into a minor primary election where Pennsylvania voters rarely participate. Each amendment is a weighty decision that should be discussed and voted on separately by all Pennsylvania voters. The Repukes are still trying to ram these through with as little notice as possible.
Thank you Jim Gregory, and I hope it's not too late.
January 23, 2023
(link) https://www.post-gazette.com/news/state/2023/01/23/california-disaster-flooding-storm-pennsylvania-emergency-management/stories/202301220167
- more at link -
Sometimes we all need a helping hand.
Pa. emergency workers deployed to California disaster for flood and landslide assistance
(link) https://www.post-gazette.com/news/state/2023/01/23/california-disaster-flooding-storm-pennsylvania-emergency-management/stories/202301220167
By Saturday, the estimated price tag for cleaning up California’s flooded landscape had topped $100 million. Emergency management agencies weren’t ready for a “megaflood,” a once-in-a-century string of storms that have dumped some 32 trillion gallons of water on California’s parched land.
While Pennsylvania hasn’t experienced the same type of disaster, it does have experts with experience in dealing with flooding. The Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency last week sent personnel to Sacramento to help that region respond to the current disaster and plan for the next one.
“The impact of historic and deadly flooding seen recently in California has been as shocking as it has been heartbreaking,” said Randy Padfield, director of the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency.
“We have a lot of staff that are very experienced in dealing with floods,” Mr. Padfield said. “Pennsylvania is one of the most flood-prone states in the nation, and as a result, our staff have the experience to provide this much-needed support to our counterparts and communities in California.”
Loaning emergency personnel from far-away states to figure out what happened and how to be ready for the next monster flood is part of an ongoing exchange of expertise across the country.
The Emergency Management Assistance Compact is a formal agreement that allows all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the Northern Mariana Islands to share resources, such as personnel or equipment, during disasters.
While Pennsylvania hasn’t experienced the same type of disaster, it does have experts with experience in dealing with flooding. The Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency last week sent personnel to Sacramento to help that region respond to the current disaster and plan for the next one.
“The impact of historic and deadly flooding seen recently in California has been as shocking as it has been heartbreaking,” said Randy Padfield, director of the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency.
“We have a lot of staff that are very experienced in dealing with floods,” Mr. Padfield said. “Pennsylvania is one of the most flood-prone states in the nation, and as a result, our staff have the experience to provide this much-needed support to our counterparts and communities in California.”
Loaning emergency personnel from far-away states to figure out what happened and how to be ready for the next monster flood is part of an ongoing exchange of expertise across the country.
The Emergency Management Assistance Compact is a formal agreement that allows all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the Northern Mariana Islands to share resources, such as personnel or equipment, during disasters.
- more at link -
Sometimes we all need a helping hand.
January 23, 2023
- more at link -
Is it a simple case of road rage? It's interesting that Trooper Levy got in his car and fled the scene when he learned that the victim's car had an operating dash camera. And this from the same story...
DA: Off-duty Pa. state trooper ran family's car off the road, shouted commands with his gun drawn
WEST CHESTER — The Chester County District Attorney's Office announced the arrest of Pennsylvania State Trooper David Levy, 36, on charges of official oppression, recklessly endangering another person, possessing an instrument of crime, and simple assault.
On Dec. 28, 2022, while off duty, Trooper Levy allegedly forced another vehicle off the road and stopped vehicles near the entrance of Longwood Gardens after driving recklessly on Route 1 in Kennett Township, according to the DA's office.
Witnesses said they heard a gunshot and observed Trooper Levy approach another car with his gun drawn shouting commands while purporting to act in an official capacity, the DA said in a release.
Trooper Levy served as a Pennsylvania State Police Trooper since February 2021 and was stationed at Troop K-Media Barracks. He is currently suspended without pay pending the outcome of the charges.
On Dec. 28, 2022, while off duty, Trooper Levy allegedly forced another vehicle off the road and stopped vehicles near the entrance of Longwood Gardens after driving recklessly on Route 1 in Kennett Township, according to the DA's office.
Witnesses said they heard a gunshot and observed Trooper Levy approach another car with his gun drawn shouting commands while purporting to act in an official capacity, the DA said in a release.
Trooper Levy served as a Pennsylvania State Police Trooper since February 2021 and was stationed at Troop K-Media Barracks. He is currently suspended without pay pending the outcome of the charges.
- more at link -
Is it a simple case of road rage? It's interesting that Trooper Levy got in his car and fled the scene when he learned that the victim's car had an operating dash camera. And this from the same story...
On Dec. 30, 2022, police searched the defendant's car and found a bullet hole in the dash of the car. A 9-millimeter Luger shell casing was found in the center console. Police later learned that earlier on the night of the incident the defendant had been drinking alcohol at a bar in Aston Township, Delaware County.
January 21, 2023
(link) https://www.post-gazette.com/news/crime-courts/2023/01/21/elizabeth-holmes-theranos-fraud-prosecutors-prison-conviction-flight-risk/stories/202301210066
- more at link -
This story was originally published in the Washington Post, but I don't have a subscription to WP.
It's good to know that the feds were watching her and considered her a potential flight risk.
Elizabeth Holmes tried to flee U.S. after conviction, prosecutors allege
(link) https://www.post-gazette.com/news/crime-courts/2023/01/21/elizabeth-holmes-theranos-fraud-prosecutors-prison-conviction-flight-risk/stories/202301210066
Elizabeth Holmes, the former Theranos CEO, booked a one-way plane ticket to Mexico that was scheduled to depart just weeks after she was convicted of fraud in January 2022, a recent court filing says. In the document, filed Thursday, prosecutors describe the booking as an “attempt to flee the country.”
Government attorneys learned of the flight — departing Jan. 26, 2022 — on Jan. 23 that year, and alerted Holmes’ legal team by email. They replied that she had booked the flight before the verdict in the hope she would be able to attend a wedding in Mexico. Holmes canceled the ticket, “but it is difficult to know with certainty what Defendant would have done had the government not intervened,” the prosecutors wrote.
The filing was in response to a motion made by Holmes, 38, to loosen restrictions placed on her region of travel. To do so, Holmes has to prove that she is not a flight risk, a requirement prosecutors say she failed to meet.
In November last year, Holmes was sentenced to more than 11 years in prison after her Jan. 3, 2022, conviction on four counts of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. She was given a self-surrender date of April 27 this year after the court found out she was pregnant with her second child.
Government attorneys learned of the flight — departing Jan. 26, 2022 — on Jan. 23 that year, and alerted Holmes’ legal team by email. They replied that she had booked the flight before the verdict in the hope she would be able to attend a wedding in Mexico. Holmes canceled the ticket, “but it is difficult to know with certainty what Defendant would have done had the government not intervened,” the prosecutors wrote.
The filing was in response to a motion made by Holmes, 38, to loosen restrictions placed on her region of travel. To do so, Holmes has to prove that she is not a flight risk, a requirement prosecutors say she failed to meet.
In November last year, Holmes was sentenced to more than 11 years in prison after her Jan. 3, 2022, conviction on four counts of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. She was given a self-surrender date of April 27 this year after the court found out she was pregnant with her second child.
- more at link -
This story was originally published in the Washington Post, but I don't have a subscription to WP.
It's good to know that the feds were watching her and considered her a potential flight risk.
January 20, 2023
(link) https://www.post-gazette.com/news/politics-state/2023/01/20/shapiro-bars-gifts-lobbyists-requiring-officials-complete-training-ethics-pledges/stories/202301200094
- more at link -
It was already a policy under Gov. Tom Wolf, but now it's an executive order.
PA Governor Josh Shapiro bars gifts from lobbyists, requires ethics training
(link) https://www.post-gazette.com/news/politics-state/2023/01/20/shapiro-bars-gifts-lobbyists-requiring-officials-complete-training-ethics-pledges/stories/202301200094
HARRISBURG – Gov. Josh Shapiro on Friday announced that he’s signed an executive order barring staff under his jurisdiction from accepting gifts from lobbyists and requiring that state officials sign an ethics pledge and complete ethics training. The new policy replaces the total gift ban that had been in place for officials in the administration of Mr. Shapiro’s predecessor Tom Wolf.
Eric Fillman, a former chief integrity office in the Office of Attorney General and chief counsel for the House Ethics Committee, will lead the ethics training. Mr. Fillman said the new gift ban is intended to provide a degree of reasonableness that will ensure that lobbyists can’t use gifts to gain undue influence while at the same time ensuring that state officials can accept modest gifts from members of the community.
“No one is going to feel bribed if they accept a bottle of water,” he said.
Mr. Shapiro provided another example, noting that a total gift ban would bar the secretary of education from accepting a T-shirt from students during a school visit. Barring state officials from accepting a gift from students would serve little purpose.
Eric Fillman, a former chief integrity office in the Office of Attorney General and chief counsel for the House Ethics Committee, will lead the ethics training. Mr. Fillman said the new gift ban is intended to provide a degree of reasonableness that will ensure that lobbyists can’t use gifts to gain undue influence while at the same time ensuring that state officials can accept modest gifts from members of the community.
“No one is going to feel bribed if they accept a bottle of water,” he said.
Mr. Shapiro provided another example, noting that a total gift ban would bar the secretary of education from accepting a T-shirt from students during a school visit. Barring state officials from accepting a gift from students would serve little purpose.
- more at link -
It was already a policy under Gov. Tom Wolf, but now it's an executive order.
January 20, 2023
Caption: Gov. Josh Shapiro and Lt. Gov. Austin Davis host a ceremony to sign their administration’s first executive order on Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2023, at the Capitol in Harrisburg. (Capital-Star photo by Marley Parish)
(link) https://www.penncapital-star.com/government-politics/in-his-first-executive-order-shapiro-removes-degree-requirement-for-thousands-of-state-jobs/
- more at link -
Good move, Governor Shapiro.
In his first executive order, Shapiro removes degree requirement for thousands of state jobs
Caption: Gov. Josh Shapiro and Lt. Gov. Austin Davis host a ceremony to sign their administration’s first executive order on Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2023, at the Capitol in Harrisburg. (Capital-Star photo by Marley Parish)
(link) https://www.penncapital-star.com/government-politics/in-his-first-executive-order-shapiro-removes-degree-requirement-for-thousands-of-state-jobs/
On his first full day in office, Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, signed his first executive order, removing a four-year degree requirement for tens of thousands of state government jobs.
Shapiro — who took the oath of office on Tuesday with Lt. Gov. Austin Davis — said the order applies to 92% of commonwealth jobs, estimating that roughly 65,000 positions in the state will be open to Pennsylvanians regardless of whether they hold a college degree.
“In Pennsylvania, the people should decide what path is best for them, not have it decided by some arbitrary requirement or any arbitrary limitation,” Shapiro said during a public signing ceremony on Wednesday.
Along with the executive action, Shapiro ordered all executive branch agencies to emphasize skills and experience during the hiring process and launched a review of the remaining 8% of jobs that still require a four-year degree. The administration also opened a new website that lets applicants search and filter state government job openings based on degree requirements.
“Pennsylvania government should be a place where every single person has the opportunity to serve and to succeed,” Davis said. “This is a significant step in tearing down barriers for employment here in Pennsylvania.”
Shapiro — who took the oath of office on Tuesday with Lt. Gov. Austin Davis — said the order applies to 92% of commonwealth jobs, estimating that roughly 65,000 positions in the state will be open to Pennsylvanians regardless of whether they hold a college degree.
“In Pennsylvania, the people should decide what path is best for them, not have it decided by some arbitrary requirement or any arbitrary limitation,” Shapiro said during a public signing ceremony on Wednesday.
Along with the executive action, Shapiro ordered all executive branch agencies to emphasize skills and experience during the hiring process and launched a review of the remaining 8% of jobs that still require a four-year degree. The administration also opened a new website that lets applicants search and filter state government job openings based on degree requirements.
“Pennsylvania government should be a place where every single person has the opportunity to serve and to succeed,” Davis said. “This is a significant step in tearing down barriers for employment here in Pennsylvania.”
- more at link -
Good move, Governor Shapiro.
January 19, 2023
(link) https://www.post-gazette.com/news/crime-courts/2023/01/19/debra-todd-pennsylvania-supreme-court-chief-justice/stories/202301190016
- more at link -
Congratulations to Debra Todd, a hard worker and high achiever who reached the top of her profession!
Ellwood City native Debra Todd was a 'superstar from the start.' Now she leads the Pa. Supreme Court
(link) https://www.post-gazette.com/news/crime-courts/2023/01/19/debra-todd-pennsylvania-supreme-court-chief-justice/stories/202301190016
When she was 12, Debra Todd walked a few blocks to a neighbor’s house in Ellwood City. He was a lawyer in town who needed help filing legal papers, and for some reason young Debra had been suggested for the job.
As she sorted papers for 50 cents an hour, the lawyer, James Keller, would tell her about his cases. He was thrilled when she reorganized one set of documents from alphabetical order to stages of litigation. At one point, Mr. Keller and his wife and office manager, Beverly, told her she could be a lawyer someday herself.
“Literally, I said, ‘Oh, can women become lawyers?’” she recalled. “I never knew many lawyers at all and the television lawyer I knew was Perry Mason.”
“It was like a light went off,” she added. “I decided at 12, ‘This is it. I’ve found what I love and this is what I want to do.’ I never changed my mind.”
On Friday, the eager young file clerk from Lawrence County will be formally installed as the first female chief justice in the 300-year history of Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court.
As she sorted papers for 50 cents an hour, the lawyer, James Keller, would tell her about his cases. He was thrilled when she reorganized one set of documents from alphabetical order to stages of litigation. At one point, Mr. Keller and his wife and office manager, Beverly, told her she could be a lawyer someday herself.
“Literally, I said, ‘Oh, can women become lawyers?’” she recalled. “I never knew many lawyers at all and the television lawyer I knew was Perry Mason.”
“It was like a light went off,” she added. “I decided at 12, ‘This is it. I’ve found what I love and this is what I want to do.’ I never changed my mind.”
On Friday, the eager young file clerk from Lawrence County will be formally installed as the first female chief justice in the 300-year history of Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court.
- more at link -
Congratulations to Debra Todd, a hard worker and high achiever who reached the top of her profession!
January 18, 2023
- more at link -
RELATED - Also there was this story from last June on Spotlight:
(link) https://www.spotlightpa.org/statecollege/2022/06/pfas-chemicals-drinking-water-benner-township-contamination/
Headline: Pa. waited more than 2 years to test wells after finding nearby contamination. Now this neighborhood wants answers.
by Adam Smeltz for Spotlight PA State College | June 28, 2022
- more at link -
These stories are related, and both are important to Pennsylvanians. Therefore I'm posting both here.
It's not all about fracking contamination.
Pennsylvania sets drinking water standards on two 'forever chemical' PFAS compounds
(link) https://stateimpact.npr.org/pennsylvania/2023/01/14/pennsylvania-sets-drinking-water-standards-on-two-forever-chemical-pfas-compounds/
Caption: The Cutaiar family drinks only bottled water at her home in Sellersville because her family's well was found to be contaminated with PFAS. Photo: Emma Lee / WHYY
By Susan Phillips, PA State Impact
JANUARY 14, 2023 | 3:39 PM
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection adopted new limits on two of the toxic class of chemicals known as PFAS.
Often referred to as “forever chemicals,” because they don’t naturally break down in the environment, PFAS compounds are linked to serious health issues, including some cancers.
The move means that all public and private drinking water treatment facilities in the state, along with commercial bottled water plants, and school and healthcare facilities will have to test for the toxic substance, report the findings and treat water for the chemicals present above the new maximum contaminant levels (MCLs).
Although the chemicals have been used in consumer products since the 1940s, scientists refer to them as “emerging contaminants” because so much is unknown about their impact on human health.
There are no federal maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) for PFAS, shorthand for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, in public drinking water. As a result, states have taken action, and a patchwork of regulations now exists across the country.
JANUARY 14, 2023 | 3:39 PM
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection adopted new limits on two of the toxic class of chemicals known as PFAS.
Often referred to as “forever chemicals,” because they don’t naturally break down in the environment, PFAS compounds are linked to serious health issues, including some cancers.
The move means that all public and private drinking water treatment facilities in the state, along with commercial bottled water plants, and school and healthcare facilities will have to test for the toxic substance, report the findings and treat water for the chemicals present above the new maximum contaminant levels (MCLs).
Although the chemicals have been used in consumer products since the 1940s, scientists refer to them as “emerging contaminants” because so much is unknown about their impact on human health.
There are no federal maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) for PFAS, shorthand for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, in public drinking water. As a result, states have taken action, and a patchwork of regulations now exists across the country.
- more at link -
RELATED - Also there was this story from last June on Spotlight:
(link) https://www.spotlightpa.org/statecollege/2022/06/pfas-chemicals-drinking-water-benner-township-contamination/
Headline: Pa. waited more than 2 years to test wells after finding nearby contamination. Now this neighborhood wants answers.
by Adam Smeltz for Spotlight PA State College | June 28, 2022
BENNER TOWNSHIP — A class of synthetic chemicals identified in 2019 near Penn State University’s airport has fouled tap water in an adjacent neighborhood, and families there are now demanding to know why it took environmental officials so long to test their wells, which they use for bathing, cooking, and drinking.
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection began providing bottled water this year to at least nine households where well water registered above a longstanding federal health advisory threshold for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, known as “forever chemicals” for their inability to break down naturally.
But as the DEP investigation in Benner Township, Centre County, approaches its third anniversary, Walnut Grove Estates residents want to know why the state didn’t start checking their wells until December — and they worry what the contamination means for their health.
“It went way, way, way too long,” said Gene Stocker, 71, whose home borders the airport’s southeast grounds.
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection began providing bottled water this year to at least nine households where well water registered above a longstanding federal health advisory threshold for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, known as “forever chemicals” for their inability to break down naturally.
But as the DEP investigation in Benner Township, Centre County, approaches its third anniversary, Walnut Grove Estates residents want to know why the state didn’t start checking their wells until December — and they worry what the contamination means for their health.
“It went way, way, way too long,” said Gene Stocker, 71, whose home borders the airport’s southeast grounds.
- more at link -
These stories are related, and both are important to Pennsylvanians. Therefore I'm posting both here.
It's not all about fracking contamination.
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Name: Kathy HinsmanGender: Female
Hometown: Pittsburgh PA
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Current location: Pittsburgh
Member since: Sat Feb 18, 2017, 02:16 PM
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