Fifth Circuit throws out EPA ban on toxic paint stripper methylene chloride

A unanimous panel ruled Sept. 15 that the agency cannot ban a chemical on uncertainty about leftover risk — it has to identify an unreasonable risk for each use, and it wrongly assumed workers would skip protective equipment.

How dangerous it actually is: EPA calls methylene chloride “likely to be carcinogenic to humans” and counts at least 88 deaths from short-term exposure since 1980 — the fumes can kill in a single stripping job, and long-term exposure is tied to kidney and liver damage.

What the rule did: the 2024 rule barred every consumer use and most industrial and commercial uses of the solvent — consumer paint removers had already been banned in 2019, and that ban stays — the court vacated only the 2024 expansion. The Trump administration defended the rule in court while saying it would revisit parts of it; health advocates called the ruling a win for the chemical industry at the expense of workers.