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Water Quality Current News
WASHINGTON, December 27, 2006 (Water Tech) – Perchlorate focus shifts with new EPA review
PORTLAND, OR, December 28, 2006 (Water Tech) – OR city challenges EPA Crypto mandates
DURHAM, NC, January 4, 2007 (Water Tech) – Third party may review NC city's lead disclosure
WASHINGTON, January 5, 2007 (Water Tech) – CA senators push perchlorate bills
Perchlorate focus shifts with new EPA review
WASHINGTON, December 27, 2006 (Water Tech) – Utilities taking part in the second scheduled review under the US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR) will not be required to monitor for perchlorate in drinking water, the American Water Works Association's WaterWeek reported recently.
Perchlorate, a manufactured and naturally occurring chemical salt, was monitored by utilities in drinking water during the first UCMR review using a method sensitive to 4 micrograms per liter, well above the EPA's acceptable level of 24.5 micrograms per liter, the report noted.
The exclusion of perchlorate from the second UCMR review paves the way for the EPA to make a preliminary determination on whether to regulate the contaminant, according to the article.
Results of the second UCMR review, which is expected to take five years, will be used by the EPA to track the frequency and levels at which the contaminants are found in drinking water and are expected to help determine whether regulations of those substances are needed to protect public health.
Multi-Pure Commentary:
Multi-Pure’s MP750 Plus RO has been certified by NSF International, under Standard 58, to reduce Perchlorate.
OR city challenges EPA Crypto mandates
PORTLAND, OR, December 28, 2006 (Water Tech) – The Portland Water Bureau (PWB) has filed a petition with the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia stating that requirements in the US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) final Long-Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule pertaining to Cryptosporidium are illegal and should be vacated, the American Water Works Association's WaterWeek reported December 28.
The EPA rule requires unfiltered systems to treat source waters for Cryptosporidium and to cover finished water reservoirs or treat their effluent for the pathogen, according to the article.
Portland officials assert in the court brief that the EPA failed to meet key legal and evidentiary requirements to support the Crypto mandates and that neither of the requirements is justified by relevant risk data, the article noted.
Third party may review NC city's lead disclosure
DURHAM, NC, January 4, 2007 (Water Tech) – A top Durham official announced plans for an independent review of the conduct of the city's water management department in its handling of lead tests performed last year on residential drinking water, a January 3 article in The News & Observer said.
City Manager Patrick Baker proposed the third-party review after Durham water officials recently acknowledged that they did not hand over at least 20 test results from seven homes, including five that had high levels of lead, when they submitted information to state regulators in October, the report noted.
According to the article, Baker said he had spoken to an unidentified state official and had received no indication that the city "violated any rule or regulation regarding testing protocols for the notification requirements to the state and to Durham homeowners."
CA senators push perchlorate bills
WASHINGTON, January 5, 2007 (Water Tech) – On the opening day of the 110th Congress, US Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Barbara Boxer (D-CA) introduced two bills that would require tests and regulation on perchlorate, a rocket-fuel ingredient found in some drinking water supplies across the nation, The Press-Enterprise reported January 4.
One of the bills would require the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to warn the public about perchlorate health hazards and to set a limit for the chemical in drinking water, the report noted.
The second bill would require drinking water to be tested for perchlorate and would mandate public notice if the chemical is found in water supplies, according to the article.
California water agencies are required to test for perchlorate, and the state's Department of Health Services is expected to set a drinking water limit soon, the story said.
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