Activists are abandoning a federal challenge of Florida鈥檚 water quality standards after the Trump Administration refused to step in.
Florida Clean Water Network head Linda Young claims relaxed standards for some cancer-causing substances, including benzene, threaten human health.
But the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is refusing to order a rewrite while other legal challenges are pending.
Young says it鈥檚 pointless to sue the EPA after Trump promised to ease regulations.
鈥淏ad cases make bad law and that鈥檚 what we鈥檙e looking at here if we move forward with a mandatory duty lawsuit right now, is that we鈥檒l get some bad law out of it.鈥�
Young filed the federal challenge before Trump took office. Florida regulators claim the new standards, which cover previously unregulated chemicals, are perfectly safe.
A state hearing officer dismissed an initial challenge on technical grounds without ruling on the merits of the complaint.
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