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desmogdonald trumpdusty horwittenvironmentgroundwater pollutionhydraulic fracturinghydraulic fracturing in the united statesnatural environmentnatureper and polyfluoroalkyl substancesperfluorooctanoic acidpollutionunconventional oilunited states environmental protection agency
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In a mashup of two environmental dangers, fracking has been producing PFAS. For at least a decade, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has allowed oil companies to use certain chemicals for fracking, even though the agency knew they could degrade into PFAS — a group of highly toxic chemical compounds — over time.
Internal EPA documents, secured through a Freedom of Information Act and released by Physicians for Social Responsibility on Monday, show that in 2011 under U.S. President Barrack Obama, the agency greenlit the use of three chemicals known as P-11- 0091, P-11-0092, and P-11-0093. Each can help oil flow out of the ground more readily. The approval came despite the fact that the EPA itself had raised concerns about the substances’ effects on human health.