Read the full article by Arlene Blum (Forbes)
“The passage of the CHIPS and Science Act two years ago was a major bipartisan success, securing billions of dollars to bring semiconductor production back to the United States. This was a boon not only for our economy and national security, but also for our fight against climate change. These tiny electronic chips convert sunlight into electricity in solar panels, regulate power flow in wind turbines, and manage battery life in electric vehicles. They are essential building blocks for the clean energy transition. Unfortunately, building these building blocks can be quite dirty.
Potentially worsening the problem, Congress recently passed the Building Chips in America Act to exempt many federally funded chips manufacturing projects from the National Environmental Policy Act. NEPA reviews are a bedrock safeguard for communities, requiring an assessment of potential impacts on local air, water, and wildlife before construction begins. This could be problematic given that organic solvents, acid gases, harmful metals, PFAS, and other unsafe chemicals are common in chipmaking.”…