Heavy metal in water found to put two-thirds of Americans at risk
It was just a little over a month ago when alarm bells sounded about the finding that six million Americans are drinking contaminated tap water.
That warning was about the chemical PFAS, which is used in the manufacturer of non-stick cookware, stain- and water-resistant coatings.
But now the situation is far worse.
A new report was just released confirming that 218 million Americans — over two-thirds of the country — are drinking water containing unsafe levels of a highly carcinogenic heavy metal called chromium-6.
That’s the very same toxic substance that Erin Brockovich revealed was being released in a California town, as shown in the movie made about her.
It’s a danger to everyone, but most especially kids and unborn children.
Fortunately, there are some easy and even inexpensive steps we can take to protect ourselves and our loved ones.
Last year the news broke about lead in the drinking water in Flint, Michigan.
Then came the nationwide warning about PFAS chemicals coming out of the tap.
But that pales in comparison to the new report released by the Environmental Working Group about chromium-6. That’s a heavy metal that can be found in nature, but the lion’s share of it comes from industrial pollution.
Experts have known for a long time that the substance can cause cancer when inhaled. But eight years ago a study done by the National Toxicology Program found that chromium-6 in drinking water caused cancer in laboratory animals.
That “gold standard” study, as well as several others, was enough for the state of California to set a “public health goal” of 0.02 parts per billion (ppb) of chromium-6 in tap water.
But figuring out what’s going on where regulations — or non-regulations — for chromium-6 are concerned can be harder than cracking a Rubik’s Cube.
Two years ago California, the only state to set an enforceable level for the toxin, decided that it would cost too much to get it out of the water supply if it used the health goal number.
So it set another number, this one 500 times higher than what its scientists said could be considered as acceptable.
Unbelievable!
But then there’s the EPA, which has never set a limit for how much chromium-6 can be in our tap water.
The EWG report found that going by the lower number set by the California scientists, 218 million Americans are drinking water with dangerous levels of chromium-6.
And even if you tally the much higher number regulators in that state use for enforcement (after being lobbied by industry to do so), that still makes the tap water of over 7 million in the U.S unsafe to drink.
Any way you look at it, the chances are good that the water you use in cooking, for making coffee and tea, and consumed by your kids and grandkids contains some amount of this highly dangerous, cancer-causing chemical.
If you’re wondering what those numbers are, here are a few examples:
- Phoenix, Arizona — 7.853 ppb
- St. Louis County Missouri — 1.258 ppb
- Baltimore, Maryland — 0.038 ppb
- New York City — 0.041 ppb
And remember, researchers said years ago that any amount over 0.02 ppb is dangerous.
As I said, kids are the most vulnerable, especially unborn babies. We can’t say that any level of chromium-6 is safe for their tiny bodies to be exposed to.
Bill Walker, co-author of the EWG report, said that when widespread contamination like this is found we should do something, not “just study it to death.”
The good news is that we don’t have to sit by and wait for our state or the EPA to act. We can do something right away!
The EWG has compiled a list of filters that can get chromium-6 out of your water. They range from a $32 pitcher to a reverse osmosis system for over $600.
The complete list can be found here.
Sources:
“Should I worry about chromium-6 in my drinking water? Susan Scutti, CNN, September 21, 2016, cnn.com
