U.S. EPA Issues Final Rule Banning All Uses of Trichloroethylene and Perchloroethylene

WASHINGTON, D.C. –– The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has issued a final rule that bans all uses of Trichloroethylene and Perchloroethylene, which the agency says are both known to cause a number of cancers.

In the Dec. 9 announcement, the EPA called the ban “another major milestone for chemical safety after decades of inadequate protections and serious delays.”

According to the EPA, TCE is “an extremely toxic chemical known to cause liver cancer, kidney cancer, and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.”

“TCE also causes damage to the central nervous system, liver, kidneys, immune system, reproductive organs, and fetal heart defects,” the EPA explained. …