4 results for author: Crystal Weston
Senator Merkley Speaks Up for Chemical Safety — and Oregon Families
At an early March Senate hearing, Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley asked the tough questions that get to the heart of serious concerns about proposed changes to the Toxic Substances Control Acts (TSCA). In recent discussions, Senator Merkley has emerged as a critical voice pushing back against industry-backed proposals that would weaken how the EPA reviews dangerous chemicals before they reach our homes, schools, and workplaces.
The Fox Guarding the Henhouse
One particularly troubling provision in the Senate draft would allow third-party reviewers (potentially hired by the chemical industry itself) to approve new chemicals. Senator Merkley didn't ...
Cuts to PFAS, Plastic Bags and Pesticides: 2025 Session Wins
The 2025 legislative session led to some major wins for environmental health in Oregon. While there’s still much work to be done to phase out toxic chemicals from our products and environments in full, the progress we made this year sets us in the right direction, and helps push for future progress.
One of the most significant legislative victories this session was the passage of SB 91. This new law phases out the sale of firefighting foam that contains toxic PFAS chemicals, which pose major health risks for first responders—and to Oregon communities endangered by the runoff of these chemicals. By removing PFAS from firefighting foam, we’re ...
Forever Chemicals in Oregon? Not If We Stop Them.
PFAS are called “forever chemicals” for a reason: once they’re in the environment, they stick around – causing harm for generations. This group of synthetic chemicals are added to products to deflect heat, grease, and water. But, instead of helping, these toxic chemicals are causing severe harm: raising cancer risks, disrupting hormones, causing neurodevelopmental effects in children, and endangering first responders, like firefighters, who protect our communities.
Right now, health issues from PFAS mirror the top two leading causes of death in our state: cancer and heart disease. We know PFAS are a negative health burden that Oregon can ...
PFAS AKA “Forever Chemicals”
The Story of PFAS
PFAS (Per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances) or ‘forever chemicals’ are a class of over 15,000 toxic chemicals. Members of this chemical class feature the strongest chemical bond known to organic chemistry- the carbon fluorine bond. This incredible chemical bond leads to properties like not reacting with other substances- including an ability to repel grease, oil, and water. In this story, chemical manufacturers wanted to give their products these properties, such as jackets that didn’t get wet, refrigerants that didn’t corrode copper pipes, and frying pans that eggs didn’t stick to. PFAS chemicals were added to pizza ...