Environmental Health
Making Vermont a safer and healthier place to live by reducing waste and eliminating toxins from consumer products, drinking water, and our environment.
Thousands of toxic or untested chemicals are used in products we’re exposed to every day in our homes, schools, and workplaces. From PFAS in our drinking water to pesticides in our natural environment to harmful chemicals found in single-use plastics and other consumer products, there are simply too many hidden dangers. These toxins are building up in our bodies and contributing to alarming trends in public health, including increased rates of birth defects, developmental disabilities, reproductive disorders, cancers, and more.
VPIRG supports federal and state legislation that will get known toxins out of consumer products and require health and safety testing before chemicals make it into products on our store shelves. We are also committed to promoting a circular economy that reduces waste, creates jobs, and holds manufacturers accountable for environmental impacts from the full life cycle of products they create.
Learn more about our Environmental Health campaigns:
Recent Environmental Health News
2022 VT Legislative Session Recap
We’ve recently wrapped up a busy, successful – and, in some cases, challenging – legislative…
Legislature passes bill to phase out most toxic light bulbs;
VT Senate advances environmental justice
The State Senate just took a major step towards environmental justice (EJ) in Vermont. S.148,…
2022 Mid-Session Legislative Update
We’re halfway through the 2022 legislative session in Vermont, and though our work continues to…
News Release: House Passes Bill to Phase Out Most Toxic Lamps
Today, the Vermont House of Representatives gave final passage to legislation to ban sales of…
Press Release: VT on track to ban CFLs
Vermont is on track to become the first state in the nation to ban the…