Virginia joins lawsuit to block EPA rollback of emission standards

Attorney General Jay Jones has joined 13 other attorneys general in a lawsuit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency over its proposal to repeal emissions standards for ethylene oxide, or EtO — a chemical often used by commercial sterilization facilities for medical supplies and considered one of the most toxic chemicals regulated under the Clean Air Act.

According to the National Cancer Institute, people who are chronically exposed to EtO through inhalation face a higher risk of DNA damage and elevated chances of lymphoma, leukemia, and stomach and breast cancers.

Under former President Joe Biden’s administration in 2024, the EPA tightened regulations on the toxic pollutant after updated scientific findings showed the chemical was more dangerous than previously understood. 

The rule changes required the full capture of EtO emissions at sterilization facilities and continuous emissions monitoring to ensure the chemicals were not escaping into surrounding areas. 

Now, President Donald Trump is ordering those stricter regulations to be halted and to be replaced with previous standards that were less stringent.

“Virginians will not turn a blind eye as the Trump administration continues to ignore science and endanger the health of our communities,” Jones said in a statement. “We urge the Trump administration and the EPA to keep this critical standard in place.” 

In the Richmond region, there are two sterilizer plants located just miles apart: Sterilization Services of Virginia and Central Virginia Health Network/Bon Securs Mercy Health. In 2022, Sterilization Services of Virginia was flagged by the EPA as a major contributor to cancer risks in the area. At the time, officials with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality stated that the facility was operating within the limits of its air permit. 

Before the 2024 regulations could take effect — which would have required the facility to reduce emissions — Trump granted the plant a two-year extension. Now, the rule is being walked back for facilities nationwide.

Statements posted on the EPA website claim the Biden-era regulations were burdensome and contributed to a national shortage of medical supplies.

“EtO is used to sterilize 50% of all medical devices in the U.S. every year — that’s 20 billion medical devices. Without EtO, it is impossible to develop a secure domestic supply chain of these critical medical devices that newborns, the elderly, and Americans undergoing surgery rely on daily to survive,” the EPA site reads.

The public comment period for the rule change ended earlier this month. The agency will now review submitted testimony and materials before finalizing the rule.