Veteran environmental attorney Phil Comella joins host Sean Grady on the Environmental Transformation Podcast to break down the EPA’s proposed rollback of PFAS drinking water regulations. With over 40 years of experience, Comella offers expert legal insight on how the delayed compliance deadlines, potential MCL reductions, and CERCLA implications could affect municipalities, water utilities, waste management companies, and communities already exposed to PFAS. The conversation covers legal risks, scientific uncertainty, and the regulatory gaps that complicate cleanup and accountability.

Thanks to our sponsors: Cascade Environmental, E-Tank, and WASTELINQ

📍 Chapters:0:00 – Introduction and Phil Comella’s background2:42 – What the EPA’s PFAS proposal actually means6:30 – Delays, politics, and public health impact10:10 – Why the proposed changes matter for communities14:50 – Legal risk for utilities, ratepayers, and manufacturers19:25 – Superfund and the challenge of hazardous substance listings24:40 – The case for a dedicated PFAS statute28:35 – Wastewater treatment, landfills, and managing leachate33:45 – PFAS in household products and regulatory blind spots38:50 – Exposure, science, and tort law consequences44:25 – Thoughts on the path forward for EPA regulation50:00 – Dark Waters, science-based policy, and legal legacy🧪 Get expert legal context on one of today’s most pressing environmental health challenges.

Emily Donovan of Clean Cape Fear returns to the Environmental Transformation Podcast to discuss the EPA’s proposed rollback of the PFAS drinking water rules and how it potentially could impact contaminated communities like hers in North Carolina. Host Sean Grady explores the legal, regulatory, and public health stakes behind the EPA’s May 14 announcement, with Donovan providing on-the-ground insight into the movement to hold polluters accountable, protect public drinking water, and stop PFAS exposure.

Thanks to our Sponsors: Cascade Environmental, E-Tank, and WASTELINQ

📍 Chapters:
0:00 - Intro and Emily Donovan returns
2:05 - Clean Cape Fear’s 8-year mission
6:40 - PFAS origins and EPA rule rollback
10:10 - Anti-backslide concerns and regulatory uncertainty
17:15 - Public health risks of short-chain PFAS
22:00 - Who pays for clean water? Utilities, polluters, or the public
27:50 - Legal action and transparency challenges
32:10 - National awareness and the role of media
38:45 - Partnerships with advocates like Mark Ruffalo and Keen
43:10 - Final thoughts: Doing what’s right for communities

🎧 Listen, learn, and join the “little army of goodness” working to end PFAS contamination.

Welcome to the Environmental Transformation Podcast with your host, Sean Grady. In this high-impact episode, we’re joined by Sam Goodman, also known as The HOP Nerd—a leading voice in Human and Organizational Performance (HOP), safety culture innovation, and host of The HOP Nerd Podcast.

🎙️ In This Episode:
Sam breaks down what HOP (Human and Organizational Performance) really means, why traditional safety programs often fall short, and how organizations can shift from blame-based models to system-level improvements that foster real operational learning, psychological safety, and frontline employee engagement.

🧠 Topics We Cover:

• What is Human and Organizational Performance (HOP)?

• How HOP differs from traditional safety programs

• The dangers of TRIR (Total Recordable Incident Rate) obsession

• Why blame, shame, and retrain doesn't work

• Moving from “who failed?” to “what failed?”

• How leadership response shapes safety culture

• Using comedy and storytelling to drive cultural change

• The origins and mission of The HOP Nerd

• Downloadable video resources for safety meetings

🔑 Key Takeaways for Safety Professionals & Leaders:

• Stop focusing on just injury metrics—start listening to workers.

• Safety isn’t the absence of incidents—it’s the presence of capacity to fail safely.

• Silence in an organization is dangerous—learn how to create environments where truth-telling is encouraged.

• Good safety culture starts with curious, calm leadership responses.

🔥 Whether you're in EHS leadership, a frontline worker, or just tired of meaningless checklists, this episode gives you the tools and mindset shift you need to create sustainable safety transformation.

📌 More from Sam Goodman — The HOP NERD:
🌐 https://www.thehopnerd.com
🎧 The HOP Nerd Podcast – Available on all major platforms
📺 Safety satire videos & learning tools: The HOP Nerd YouTube Channel

👷‍♂️ Who is Sam Goodman?
Sam is a HOP practitioner, speaker, consultant, and podcast host who brings humor, insight, and real-world experience to the conversation about modern safety systems. His work is deeply influenced by leaders like Todd Conklin and Sidney Dekker, but his approach is distinctly his own—bold, funny, and transformative.

🔎 SEO Keywords:
Human and Organizational Performance, HOP safety, Sam Goodman HOP NERD, modern safety leadership, safety culture podcast, TRIR criticism, safety differently, safety improvement strategies, frontline safety communication, operational learning, leadership response safety, psychological safety in the workplace, HOP tools, safety performance podcast, environmental transformation podcast

📣 Subscribe, rate, and review the podcast to help more safety and environmental professionals discover practical strategies that make a difference!