- California regulators have established the nation’s first drinking water limits for hexavalent chromium, aimed at reducing long-term health risks.
- The proposal passed unanimously and could influence other states to take similar measures.
- Water utilities will have six months to begin testing and submit compliance plans for exceeded levels.
California regulators voted Wednesday to impose drinking water restrictions on hexavalent chromium, a toxic compound made infamous in the movie “Erin Brockovich.”
The rule is the first in the country to specifically target the heavy metal known as chromium-6, and state officials say it is expected to reduce the number of cancers and kidney diseases caused by long-term ingestion. .
The proposal was passed unanimously by the State Water Resources Control Board, but must be approved by the Office of Administrative Law to take effect.
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This standard could prompt other states to adopt their own standards. More than 200 million Americans are estimated to have this compound in their drinking water, according to an analysis of federal water testing data by the Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit research and advocacy group.
April 26, 2023, San Francisco skyline. California regulators voted Wednesday to impose drinking water restrictions on hexavalent chromium, a toxic compound made infamous in the movie “Erin Brockovich.” (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)
Previously, California combined drinking water standards for chromium-6 with less toxic trivalent chromium, an essential nutrient. California’s new limit for chromium-6 is 10 parts per billion, or about 10 drops of pool water.
“I know there are mixed feelings about this decision today… there is a view that there should be a lower standard,” board member Sean Maguire said before the vote. “But I want to take a step back and look at California compared to other parts of the country. I think we’re really leading the way here.”
Community members and health advocates worry California’s restrictions aren’t enough to protect public health from the metal. They want the state to adopt a drinking water limit closer to the public health goal of 0.02 parts per billion, a level that scientists say does not pose a significant health risk.
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“This leaves many communities in California vulnerable to a truly powerful carcinogen,” said Tasha Stoiber, senior scientist at the Environmental Working Group.
The Commission is required by law to set limits as close to public health goals as economically and technically feasible.
Some public water providers have warned that the new standards will cause customers to pay more for water, placing the economic burden disproportionately on disadvantaged communities. Some chemical industry groups also say the limits are not based on the latest science.
The new restrictions will cost public water systems between $483,446 and $172.6 million a year to monitor and treat substandard water, according to state water board estimates.
Casturo Estrada, executive vice president of the Coachella Valley Water District and public works manager for the City of Coachella, said the restrictions will have an “unprecedented” impact on residents and customers. He said all six of Coachella’s wells have chromium-6 above 10 parts per billion, and that installing technology to bring levels down to the limit would cost an estimated $90 million. “If that happens, the monthly fee will be higher.”
Ana Maria Perez, a Monterey County resident, asked the board to set lower limits to protect communities with chronic water pollution. “We have been waiting for limits on chromium-6 to protect our health,” she said in Spanish. “It’s not fair that so many people get sick.”
Water utilities will be required to begin testing for chromium-6, both naturally occurring and produced in industrial processes, within six months of the proposed effective date in October. If water testing exceeds limits, you must submit a compliance plan within 90 days and comply within two to four years, depending on the number of customers you serve.
Chromium occurs naturally in soil, plants, animals, and rocks, and can leach from the soil into groundwater. According to the California Department of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, it exists in various forms, including chromium-6, and is used in electroplating, stainless steel manufacturing, leather tanning, textile manufacturing, and wood preservation, all of which It is said that this may contribute to drinking water contamination.
Scientists have known for decades that inhaling chromium-6 can cause lung cancer, but it was long unclear whether ingestion could also cause cancer.
Research by the National Toxicology Program changed that. Rodents who drank water containing high levels of chromium-6 over a two-year period developed intestinal and oral cancer, a study showed.
Some researchers have criticized the study, saying the concentrations of chemicals given to the rodents were thousands of times higher than those found in the U.S. drinking water supply.
The California Environmental Health Hazards Agency is updating its public health goal for hexavalent chromium, which was set in 2011 with a final goal of 0.02 ppb. At this level, the lifetime risk of cancer is 1 in 1 million, which is generally accepted by medical professionals.
Some health advocates have urged the board to wait until the latest public health goals are released before setting limits. But some environmental justice nonprofits supporting the floor said the board should not wait any longer.
California’s new restrictions increase cancer risk 500 times higher than public health goals. One in 2,000 people exposed to drinking water containing 10 parts per billion of chromium-6 for 70 years could experience cancer, according to a report from the state water board.
Research on the health effects of consuming chromium-6 through drinking water is limited, said Maria Nefeli Georgaki, an environmental health expert who studies the health effects of chromium-6 intake. However, she added that a maximum of 10 ppb is an important starting point and should thereafter be “adjusted at specific regular intervals, according to both emerging public health issues and new research data.”
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Water officials are required to review standards every five years. But at Wednesday’s meeting, Darin Polhemus, deputy director of the Water Authority’s drinking water division, said the standards are constantly being reviewed.
The state adopted a 10 parts per billion limit in 2014, but the rule was overturned in 2017 for failing to consider whether it was economically viable.
The standards are the latest chapter in a decades-long fight to regulate chemicals made infamous by the 2000 film “Erin Brockovich,” for which Julia Roberts won an Oscar for best actress. In the 1990s, Brockovich helped investigate groundwater contaminated with chromium-6, which plagued communities in Southern California. Residents ultimately won a $333 million settlement with Pacific Gas and Electric Company for contaminating their water.
