CHE-Alaska presents: The Urgent Need to Address Toxic PFAS Chemicals to Protect Drinking Water and Public Health
January 25, 2023 @ 1:00pm (AKST)
On January 25th at 1pm AKST CHE-Alaska hosted a webinar on PFAS legislation and states taking the lead.
The Urgent Need to Address Toxic PFAS Chemicals to Protect Drinking Water and Public Health.
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are toxic chemicals widely used in consumer products, industrial firefighting foams used on military bases and airports, and can be found in drinking water throughout Alaska and the US. In Alaska, the use of PFAS-based firefighting foams has contaminated the drinking water of communities from the North Slope to southeast Alaska.
CHE-Alaska is proud to present: The Urgent Need to Address Toxic PFAS Chemicals to Protect Drinking Water and Public Health. This webinar will discuss the dangers of PFAS in firefighting foams, consumer products, and water. We will discuss precedents in other states taking the lead in drafting bills to tackle PFAS, including how bipartisan support advances these critical policies.
Featured speakers include Sarah Woodbury from Defend our Health, Gretchen Salter of Safer States, and Alaska State Senator Jesse Kiehl.
- Fact Sheet PFAS Momentum
- 2023 PFAS Toolkit for Legislators
- Sarah Woodbury Defend our Health PFAS presentation
- Gretchen Salter Safer States PFAS Presentation
- PFAS and PBDEs in traditional subsistence foods from Sivuqaq, Alaska
- PFAS in drinking water and serum of the people of a southeast Alaska community: A pilot study
- Exposure to polybrominated diphenyl ethers and perfluoroalkyl substances in a remote population of Alaska Natives
Featured speakers
Sarah Woodbury is the director of advocacy at Defend and spearheads the organization’s advocacy and coalition work. Her organization played a critical role in compelling the 2021 Maine Legislature to pass a law to eliminate the use of toxic PFAS in consumer products.
Gretchen Salter is a strategic advisor for Safer States and offers political and technical assistance to state advocates and legislators on a variety of environmental issues. She serves as a lead on civic engagement work and created a national PFAS campaign coalition bringing together scientists, activists and advocates to eliminate the use of PFAS.
Alaska Senator Jesse Kiehl (D) was elected in 2019 and serves for District B representing Juneau, Haines, Skagway, Gustavus, and Klukwan. In the 2022 legislative session, Sen. Kiehl sponsored SB 121, which would have established enforceable drinking water standards for PFAS and other measures to protect Alaska’s water and communities. Although the bill did not pass in 2022, Kiehl is drafting a new version of the bill for this year’s legislative session.