US appeals court kills ban on plastic containers contaminated with PFAS

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: The Guardian

Sat 30 Mar 2024 07.00 EDT


A federal appeals court in the US has killed a ban on plastic containers contaminated with highly toxic PFAS “forever chemicals” found to leach at alarming levels into food, cosmetics, household cleaners, pesticides and other products across the economy. Houston-based Inhance manufactures an estimated 200m containers annually with a process that creates, among other chemicals, PFOA, a toxic PFAS compound.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in December prohibited Inhance from using the manufacturing process. But the conservative fifth circuit court of appeals court overturned the ban.

The judges did not deny the containers’ health risks, but said the EPA could not regulate the buckets under the statute it used. The rule requires companies to alert the EPA if a new industrial process creates hazardous chemicals. Inhance has produced the containers for decades and argued that its process is not new, so it is not subject to the regulations. The EPA argued that it only became aware that Inhance’s process created PFOA in 2020, so it could be regulated as a new use, but the court disagreed.

“The court did not dispute EPA’s underlying decision that this is a danger to human health, what they did was say it’s not a new use, which I think is wrong … but this case isn’t over by any stretch,” said Kyla Bennett, a former EPA official now with the Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (Peer) non-profit, which has intervened in legal proceedings.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/mar/30/pfas-ban-plastic-containers-court

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Saw the headline and didn't even need to guess where that was filed.

[Irish_Dem]

1. The US courts seem hell bent on killing as many Americans as possible.

They believe the law and the constitution tell them to do this.

[Igel]

3. Look at law--a process--and not at outcome.

That's a lot of the problem and division.

Too often news reports look at outcome. "We like X and they didn't decide in favor of X." But law is process-based. Give me the text of the statute, relevant case law, regulatory interpretation and the argument in the decision. That's rare in a lot of media. It's all "do X or you're evil" polemic--without recourse to actual law or interpretation. This strikes me as denying the third branch of our democracy it's validity--it, too, must deny process and argument and law and instead favor majoritarianism.

[Irish_Dem]

4. Outcome is the only thing to consider.

Last edited Sat Mar 30, 2024, 06:45 PM - Edit history (1)

The outcome that women are second class citizens.
Women are left to die due to legally mandated neglect by their medical team.

American citizens are mowed down in cold blood because of mass ownership of military
grade weapons.

There is blood on the hands of judges.

Process excuses are absurd.
American judges have blood on their hands.
They don't give a damn about American citizens.

ETA: We can no longer be brainwashed into thinking the legal process is sacred.
We now know that the judges are easily corrupted or partisan hacks.
Or afraid to do the right thing.

[Biophilic]

7. This is true and, I think, very sad.

Certainly it’s disillusioning. Once upon a time I thought we had a really good country or at least one that was actively working at over coming some of its problems. I honestly thought the courts were basically incorruptible or they had ways to correct themselves. I feel a bit like a little kid just finding out that there is no Santa Claus. It’s a bit painful.

[OldBaldy1701E]

11. Yes it is.

But, we need to get over it and do something about it, not just doing the 'old men at the barber shop' routine. Unfortunately, our justice system is rigged to benefit the wealthy. If you are one of them, you are protected by law. If you are not... well, just ask that Renner boy who just got indicted for murder and was able to not only leave the scene, but his parents were plotting to hide evidence and send him out of the country until the whole thing became moot. (Not to mention the fact that his parents got valet service from the Sheriffs Dept. because reasons.

[Midnight Writer]

5. Is the Fifth Circuit the only one to look at the process?

Because they sure have different outcomes than the rest of the circuits.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

10. We are witnessing the process of extremist judges finding excuses to impose their ideology on all.

[Mr. Mustard 2023]

15. Let's not forget our animal cousins...

...seems few give a crap about them.

[RandomNumbers]

17. And the people arguing for the right to kill, call themselves "pro-life". nt

[getagrip_already]

2. To the ultra lefties who voted for trump in '16 because....

Reasons.

Here is your result. He appointed the judges in the fifth circuit, considered unqualified during confirmation, that are coming up with these decisions.

No difference between the candidates. It doesn't matter. Might as well shake things up.

Things shaken.

[sinkingfeeling]

6. Knew it was the Fifth after reading the ban was overturned.

[WestMichRad]

8. If this is from the Fifth Circuit

and I have no reason to presume that it isn’t, then I have a message for those judges:
F**k you, a**holes!

[Martin68]

9. Courts pretending they understand the science.

[GiqueCee]

12. Yet another confirmation...

... that conservatism is a mental disorder on the sociopathy spectrum.

[Chellee]

14. F60.2 - Diagnosis code

Although they would probably consider it a badge of honor, like 'deplorable.'

[Bayard]

13. So, putting plastic poisons into people is grandfathered in?

You could say that about a bunch of things, like cigarettes.

[GAJMac]

16. So force-feed the judges

a steady diet of PFOA. Make 'em have some skin in the game.

[Scruffy1]

18. Maybe they just like bribes.

All of these asshats were installed by Leonard Leo who got a billion dollars in one bequest not so long ago. Probably not bags of cold, hard cash or direct deposits but more like a rewards program. We are dealing with lawyers here, so I don't buy any kind of morality issues. Lawyering and morality are antonyms. Maybe old Leo prepays before they secure the gig and keeps evidence for blackmail. I have no evidence for this, but we have all seen how lax the feds are in screening judicial candidates. Any competent attorney can probably find some grounds for dismissal of any law or regulatory action. That is what they do for a living. Call me cynical, but if I had the power I would be checking some their financial records and travel history. With Kavanaugh the corruption was obvious and he got away with it and used a story about "baketball tickets" which phrase i assumed to be similar to a mafia term or a Worldcom accounting term. Call me cynical, but I have watched the shit show for over 60 years and to give these evil fucks a pass with the term "conservative" is a bridge too far. Hell, our useless feds can't even charge our very corrupt Ken Paxton after the Texas legislature handed over the evidence on a silver platter. I assume all these asshats are "pro-life" but see no problem with poisoning people after they are born as long as their approved "process" is followed.

[Diraven]

19. Let's bring back asbestos and lead paint too

Those were produced long before the EPA was even established. There's money to be made here!

[Magoo48]

20. And the Clowns of the Apocalypse race the brakeless machine of state blindly into our inevitable dystopian legacy.

Yahooooooooo…