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EPA’s draft CCL 6 names microplastics and pharmaceuticals as priority drinking water threats for the first time, adds PFAS and other contaminants, and launches new health benchmarks to guide risk assessment and future regulation.

EPA and HHS launched major initiatives to confront microplastics, adding them and pharmaceuticals to CCL 6 for the first time, while ARPA‑H’s new STOMP program will measure, track, and remove microplastics to protect public health.

PFAS are persistent “forever chemicals” found in water, soil, and air, linked to cancer and immune, developmental, and hormonal harm. EPA’s new rules set strict limits, require monitoring, and drive costly treatment upgrades as utilities work to remove and manage PFAS contamination.

Winter is the ideal time to review SOPs—updating safety policies, improving communication, adopting digital tools, and checking field compliance—to ensure procedures stay accurate, understood, and consistently followed.

AWWA report projects U.S. drinking water infrastructure needs $2.1-$2.4T over 25 yrs, with a $56.6B annual gap. If funded by rates alone, household bills could double to $969 by 2050, straining affordability. Federal loan programs are key to moderating rate hikes.

Looking for Life Member Photos

Mars once had abundant water, but Hubble and MAVEN data show it escaped to space as hydrogen and deuterium leaked from a turbulent, rapidly changing atmosphere. By tracking these escape rates, scientists reconstructed Mars’ wet past and gained insights that also help predict how Earth‑like planets evolve.

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