By Hanna Scott, My Northwest:
Governor Jay Inslee signed a bill Tuesday that will make Washington state the first in the country to ban the sale of firefighting foams containing chemicals known to be a health hazard.
Senate Bill 6413 bans the sale, manufacturing, and distribution of foams where PFAS have been intentionally added starting in 2020.
The bill also prohibits the use of those foams in training. It requires manufacturers that sell firefighter protective gear to notify buyers if the equipment contains the chemicals.
Michael White from the Washington Council of Firefighters says this is a big win for firefighters.
“We think that there is going to be a reduction in firefighter cancer or, at least, on the prevention side, minimizing the exposure to firefighters with these chemicals. That doesn’t mean that these chemicals aren’t going to be in Washington state completely. They’re still going to be carried where they’re federally mandated, so airports, military bases.”
Read the full story here.
Photo: Ted Warren, Associated Press