Healthy Begins Here

Millions Drinking Carcinogen-Contaminated Water

The Environmental Working Group (EWG) has just released their latest analysis of drinking water in which they found hexavalent chromium (widely known from the movie “Erin Brockovich”) in 89% of cities tested. According to the EWG, “this “investigation is the broadest publicly available survey of hexavalent chromium to date. The 31 cities with chromium-polluted tap water draw from utilities that collectively serve more than 26 million people.”

The following cities were found to have hexavalent chromium in the drinking water supplies: (the ten cities with the highest levels are noted in parentheses)

• Honolulu, HI (#2)
• Bend, OR (#10)
• Sacramento, CA
• San Jose, CA (#5)
• Riverside, CA (#3)
• Los Angeles, CA
• Las Vegas, NV
• Salt Lake City, UT
• Scottsdale, AZ
• Phoenix, AZ
• Albuquerque, NM (#8)
• Norman, OK (#1)
• Omaha, NE (#7)
• Madison, WI (#4)
• Milwaukee, WI
• Chicago, IL
• Ann Arbor, MI
• Louisville, KY
• Cincinnati, OH
• Buffalo, NY
• Syracuse, NY
• Pittsburgh, PA (#9)
• Villanova, PA
• Boston, MA
• New Haven, CT
• New York, NY
• Bethesda, MD
• Washington, DC
• Atlanta, GA
• Tallahassee, FL (#6)
• Miami, FL

According to coverage on Yahoo News, Erin Brockovich told the EWG that she’s rather astonished to find that hexavalent chromium is still a prospective health threat in so many communities. “It is sometimes difficult to understand why I still have to warn the public about the presence of hexavalent chromium in drinking water 23 years after my colleagues and I first sounded the alarm,” Brockovich told the EWG. “This report underscores, in fairly stark terms, the health risks that millions of Americans still face because of water contamination.”

Currently, the Safe Drinking Water Act regulates a mere 91 contaminants – and the EPA is considering whether to set limits for more. Hexavalent chromium is under review after being deemed a probable carcinogen in 2008.

What Can You Do?
While the US has some of the safest water in the world, the US Environmental Protection Agency Office of Water emphasizes: “national statistics don’t tell you specifically about the quality and safety of the water coming out of your tap. That’s because drinking water quality varies from place to place, depending on the condition of the source water from which it is drawn and the treatment it receives.”

Every home has unique water quality issues, so it’s vital for consumers to do a little independent research to understand their water.

Here are some guidelines to get you started:

1. Do you live in a city listed above? Filter out hexavalent chromium at home. According to the EWG, “the best way to remove chromium-6 from tap water at home is with a reverse osmosis filter. These filtration systems can be expensive, but with proper maintenance they can last at least a decade, bringing the cost down to as little as $5 per month. There’s no legal limit for chromium-6 in either tap water or bottled water, so there’s no guarantee that either one is free of this contaminant.”

2. Whether or not your city made the list – get water wise.
To reduce your exposure to contaminants, you have to know which contaminants could be present. Public utilities publish all their water quality tests. Bottled water companies don’t. Read your annual tap water quality report by looking up your city’s water in EWG’s National Tap Water Atlas. (Private well? Get it tested.)

3. Find a filter.
Decide what your main contaminant issues are and invest in personal protection – a good water filter. Use the EWG’s Water Filter Buying Guide to find exactly what suits your needs and budget. Note: Studies show we take in as much or more chemicals from showering as we do from drinking water. So, if you’re really concerned, you may want to start looking into a shower filter or whole house filter.

Learn more:

• Read the Full Report from the Environmental Working Group: Chromium-6 Is Widespread in US Tap Water
• Safe Drinking Water: Testing Your Water
• A Checklist for Providing Safe Drinking Water for Your Family
• Hexavalent Chromium – National Toxicology Program
• Congress Must Protect People from Toxic Chemicals Known to Cause Harm: Hexavalent Chromium

Editor’s note: Good news! Just two days after the release of Environmental Working Group’s (EWG) analysis of chromium-6 (hexavelent chromium) contamination in the drinking water of 31 U.S. cities, the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued a comprehensive plan to help local water utilities address the problem. Read more.