Read the full story in The Hill.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will investigate the potential negative impacts on human health from the emissions of airplanes using leaded fuel, the agency announced Wednesday.
A 2016 EPA report indicated piston-engine planes are the single largest airborne source of lead exposure. Leaded fuel from other sources was phased out in 1996 under the Clean Air Act, but it remains the only useable fuel for piston-engine airplanes, about 170,000 of which are currently airborne, according to the National Academies of Sciences. Overall airborne lead exposures in the U.S. have fallen 99 percent since 1980.
The agency will issue a formal proposal for public comment in 2022 before determining a final action next year, according to the EPA.