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California Adopts Definition of Microplastics in Drinking Water

/in , , /by /The National Law Reviewby Dacia T. Meng

In accordance with deadlines set in 2018 legislation, the California State Water Resources Control Board has adopted a definition for “microplastics” that will be used in testing of drinking water for microplastics. The Board was required, on or before July 1, 2020, to adopt a definition of microplastics in drinking water and, on or before July 1, 2021, will be required to adopt requirements for testing and reporting on microplastics in drinking water, among other things. While this development is currently focused on the testing of drinking water in California, the Board and others expect that it will form the basis of future efforts to quantify and address microplastics in the environment.

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Why Limiting PFAS in Drinking Water is a Challenge in the U.S.

/in , , /by /Chemical & Engineering Newsby Cheryl Hogue

n article in the local newspaper caught Andrea Amico’s eye in May 2014. It reported that one of the three drinking-water wells at a sprawling business and industrial park nearby was shut down because of high levels of chemical contamination.

“Instantly, my heart sank,” says the Portsmouth, New Hampshire, woman. Amico recalls her reaction to the news: “My husband works there and he drinks water all day, and my two kids go to daycare there and they drink water all day.”

She’d never heard of the substances tainting the tap water—Portsmouth was one of the first communities in the US to discover these chemicals in public drinking water. Amico, who holds a master’s degree in occupational therapy and works in health care, started researching health effects from these contaminants and at first found little information.

Today, the situation has changed.

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What Happens When a Drinking Water System Fails? Ask This Small California Town

/in , , /by /The Sacramento Beeby Monica Vaughan

Residents in Earlimart, California, lost water service when a 50-year-old well on Mary Ann Avenue failed in late May.

When it came back on, the main source of drinking water for more than 8,000 residents became a well contaminated with a chemical from banned pesticides. And most residents didn’t know.

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Poway Report Shows Drinking Water is Safe and High-Quality

/in , , /by /The San Diego Union Tribune - Pomerado Newsby Emily Sorensen

The City of Poway’s drinking water remains high-quality according to the city’s 2019 annual Water Quality Report.

The annual publication is a state and federal requirement that provides test results of water quality analysis conducted in 2019, according to a press release from the city. It is also called a Consumer Confidence Report and is intended to educate the public on the extensive monitoring done on tap water and the findings of those tests.

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Nevada Mulls EPA Reversal of Obama Era Drinking Water Rules

/in , /by /The San Diego Union Tribune

The Trump administration has decided a chemical with a notorious legacy in Nevada will not be regulated in drinking water, but state officials say the reversal of the Obama-era policy shouldn’t result in any decline in drinking water standards across the state.

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Arizona Starts Talks on Addressing Dwindling Colorado River

/in , , /by /AP Newsby Felicia Fonseca

Arizona is getting a jump start on what will be a yearslong process to address a dwindling but key water source in the U.S. West.

Several states and Mexico rely on the Colorado River for drinking water and growing crops. But climate change, drought and demand have taken a toll on the river that no longer can deliver what was promised in the 1920s.

Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, California, Utah, Wyoming and Nevada have been operating under a set of guidelines approved in 2007. Those guidelines and an overlapping drought contingency plan will expire in 2026.

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New Grant Helps Assess Benefits of Satellites for Determining Water Quality

/in , , /by /UC Mercedby Leigh Bernacchi

Summertime means fun in the water, but as temperatures increase, algal blooms can grow in freshwater and marine ecosystems. Some algae are natural and life-giving, while others are the result of life out of balance and can have harmful effects. Consisting of bacteria and tiny plankton, they arise quickly and alter the ecosystem by consuming available oxygen, killing fish.

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Central California Town Without Water for Days Due to Algae

/in , /by /The San Diego Union Tribune

Residents of a town in central California won’t have water for several days after the town’s water treatment plant became clogged with algae, officials said. The water outage in Dos Palos started Monday, when the city declared a water emergency and urged the town’s 5,000 residents to use only boiled tap water for drinking and cooking to avoid stomach or intestinal illness.

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Opinion: A Social Justice Perspective of the Delta Tunnel Project

/in , , /by /CalMattersby Gary Kremen

As California confronts increasing water challenges, the most equitable statewide solution from a social justice perspective is the single-tunnel project proposed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, known as the Delta Conveyance Project.

More than 27 million Californians rely on imported drinking water conveyed through the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. This imported water also serves millions of acres of local agricultural lands and vital wildlife refuges.

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Trump Administration Will Not Regulate Rocket Fuel Chemical in Drinking Water

/in , , /by /The Guardianby Emily Holden

US environmental regulators have decided they will not put restrictions on perchlorate – a rocket fuel ingredient known to harm fetal brain development – in drinking water. The Environmental Protection Agency argued that the federal government, states and public water systems have already taken proactive steps to reduce perchlorate levels.

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