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The EPA’s new science boss told Townhall this week that “gold standard science is alive and well” at the agency. Teresa Booeshaghi, who now heads the Office of Applied Science and Environmental Solutions, made that claim while outlining priorities like PFAS, microplastics and a plan to end mammal testing by 2035. If you like clear goals and fewer lab animals, that sounds like progress. If you like political theater, get ready — there will be plenty of that, too.
Booeshaghi’s pitch: science, coordination, and priorities
Teresa Booeshaghi, the Associate Administrator for OASES, says the new office will coordinate science across the EPA so research lines up with real legal duties and program needs. That matters because an agency that chases headlines instead of statutes makes bad rules and wastes money. Booeshaghi pushed back hard against the idea that the EPA stopped doing science. She said the agency is focused on practical research that helps regulators and communities — not just studies to please the partisan press corps.
13 new NAMs and the 2035 mammal-testing goal
Alongside Booeshaghi’s interview, the EPA announced it added 13 New Approach Methods to its list and opened a clearer path for outside scientists and companies to nominate more methods. The goal is to eliminate mammal testing by 2035. That’s a big target, and it’s smart policy: modern tests can be faster, cheaper, and more humane than dragging out old animal studies. EPA officials also pointed out that using alternatives in past chemical reviews spared roughly 1,600 mice and rats — a real number, not just political posturing.
PFAS and microplastics: real threats, real science
Booeshaghi said PFAS — the so-called forever chemicals — and microplastics in drinking water are top concerns. That’s unsurprising. Americans want clean water and clear answers about health risks. If OASES focuses on fate and transport, bioaccumulation, and workable fixes, the agency will do more good than a thousand press conferences. The practical test for this office will be getting usable science into the hands of regulators and communities that need protection, not just producing papers that collect dust.
Oversight matters, but so does progress
Critics in Congress — mostly Democrats — complain that reorganizations and staffing changes have hurt EPA science. Those are fair questions. Reorganizing a big agency can cause growing pains, and oversight is necessary. But constant alarmism that “science is under attack” ignores the concrete steps the EPA is taking to modernize testing and focus research on real public health problems. If OASES delivers transparent peer review, clear staffing plans, and measurable results on PFAS and microplastics, then skeptics should be ready to admit when policy actually works. For now, let’s watch the data and give credit where the agency earns it — while keeping the oversight candle burning bright.
