Sen. Anderson says protections need to stay strong with TSCA law especially since BioLab explosion spread a toxic chemicals across GA
July 14, 2026
By Ramona Cornell du Houx
ATLANTA, GA. A broad coalition of health professionals, community members, veterans, elected officials and non-profit organizations are worried that Congress may not keep the strong chemical protections under The Toxic Substance Chemical Act. TSCA is a law enacted in 1976 to regulate chemicals used in our everyday lives, aimed at protecting the health of Americans and the environment. Prior to TSCA, many chemicals were allowed on the market without any safety review. TSCA plays a crucial role in keeping chemicals out of our air, water and soil.
“As a veteran, a minister and a state senator my moral responsibility is to fight for the people in my community and all those I represent in every way possible. Numbers and statistics cannot express the depths of trauma too many suffered when the BioLab exploded sending a plume of toxic chemicals into the air, reaching the Atlanta Metro area,” said Tonya Anderson, Georgia State Senator, Air Force Reserve Veteran, Minister. “My community’s trust was broken. Safe zones vanished overnight. Many no longer felt protected in their own homes as the contaminated air filtered inside. The insidious nature of the unseen chemicals in the air that residents breathed, along with how they are still dealing with the contamination left behind in the soil and water make people feel violated. Those who lost their lives, will live on in our memories as we continue to mourn and rebuild. This tragedy shows us that we must ensure laws like the Toxic Substance Chemical Act continue to be strong and protect all Americans.”
Georgia State Sen. Anderson reached out to US Rep Warnock and then US Senator Jon Ossoff, and Congressman Henry C. Johnson, Jr. Together they stood with community leaders and concerned citizens calling for corporate accountability and compensation. Now BioLab is not producing these chemicals at this plant and a BioLab compensation program was set up.
“Toxic chemicals have upended the lives of far too many Americans,” said Sarah Vogel, senior vice president for Healthy Communities at Environmental Defense Action Fund. “Every incident reflects failures to effectively manage toxic chemicals and come with real world consequences for families, workers, and entire communities—loss of health, of homes, of livelihoods and the loss of loved ones. Today, our bedrock public health protections under the Toxic Substances Control Act and the integrity of the law itself are at risk.”
The TSCA law was strengthened and updated in 2016. Now, TSCA gives the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the power to oversee the safety of harmful chemicals – including several that cause cancer – in everyday products like household cleaners, furniture, electronics and more.TSCA covers highly toxic chemicals, like trichloroethylene (TCE), PFAS, methylene chloride and asbestos, present an unreasonable risk to people and the environment.
“In the military we serve and protect all Americans from dangers foreign and domestic,” said Alex Cornell du Houx, President of Elected Officials to Protect America, former Combat Marine and former Maine State Representative. “We proudly stand by that credo at Elected Officials To Protect America. America must protect all our citizens from the dangers of toxic chemicals with a strong Toxic Substance Chemical Act.”
