EPA Faces Backlash Over Drinking Water Monitoring Plan.
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released a draft of a new drinking water monitoring plan that fails to include review of microplastics, despite calls from 176 organizations, seven governors and 14 attorneys general.
The proposal outlines the agency’s Sixth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 6), which identifies contaminants that public water systems will be required to monitor between 2028 and 2030.
Because the rule is updated only once every five years, the omission means microplastics are unlikely to be included in a nationwide federal monitoring program until at least the next UCMR cycle, unless the EPA changes course before the rule is finalized.
