Lawsuit alleges EPA fast-tracked dangerous chip-making chemicals
Earthjustice is suing the EPA for approving two photoacid generators used in semiconductor manufacturing without adequate safeguards. The chemicals are said to be acutely toxic, with exposure potentially causing sudden death, cancer, and other harms. The lawsuit alleges the EPA fast-tracked approval amid a pattern around data centers.
The two photoacid generators at issue are essential to semiconductor lithography, where they enable circuit pattern formation on silicon wafers. Earthjustice's complaint centers on the EPA's alleged failure to establish safe exposure thresholds before permitting import and use, despite the chemicals' acutely toxic classification and potential for lethal exposure, cancer, and reproductive harm.
The litigation invokes the Toxic Substances Control Act, which mandates restrictions when unreasonable risk exists. The approvals follow a 2025 executive order aimed at accelerating chemical reviews for data center supply chains. The chemicals' PFAS classification adds environmental persistence concerns, as these compounds resist degradation and accumulate in ecosystems, compounding existing industry-wide challenges around forever chemical cleanup.
This lawsuit could reshape how the U.S. balances semiconductor manufacturing growth against chemical safety oversight. Workers in fabrication plants and communities near manufacturing facilities may face the most direct exposure risks, while broader populations could encounter these persistent PFAS compounds through environmental contamination over time. The outcome may influence whether future chemical