This week's NEWS

Tucson water quality to be sculpted to satisfy consumers' taste and pocketbooks. Politics and drinking water standards get intermixed at state level (also!): It's alachlor in Wisconsin and economic value of health benefits in California. Get connected by RSS to CDC emergency bulletins on quality threats and issues. What are the sources of perchlorate in the U.S. food supply? Not everyone is happy with Congress' interim appropriations measure to address security of chemical facilities.

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Federal Updates

• EPA's Inspector General report says there was inadequate oversight of "earmark" grants

State Updates

• Wisconsin legislature blocks state's attempt to set drinking water standard for alachlor; Monsanto's lobbying for more study cited (Wisconsin State Journal, September 28)
• California Governor vetoes proposed SB 187 (PDF files, 9.6 K and 93.2 K) that would have added additional requirements for the state's MCL-setting process. Reaction to the veto (Daily Bulletin, October 2)
  Commentary: One provision of the proposed amendments to California's existing prescriptive law on setting drinking water standards is the following: "The department may also consider, to the extent information is available, as a part of the determination of economic feasibility, the potential affects (sic) on human health that may result from the adoption of a primary drinking water standard that is less stringent than the public health goal."  Determining the actual, incremental effects at these very low levels is a challenge; putting any realistic cost value on the tiny increment would be daunting.

Aesthetics

• Tucson Water consumers asked to taste the alternatives and help decide which way to go in the future (Arizona Daily Star, October 1); taste tests will help city decide: 650 ppm TDS or 450 ppm with the cost of RO treatment (Arizona Daily Star, October 2)

Microbiological

• Drinking water was not involved in the recent "E. coli  in spinach" scare, but there are areas of spillover interest, including how gastrointestinal disease outbreaks are recognized and investigated, analytical issues, and the potential for water, albeit recycled, to be included in the evaluation of causative factors: 
  • CDC's report on the outbreak of Escherichia coli  serotype O157:H7 infections associated with consumption of fresh spinach (MMWR, September 29)
  • CDC notes importance of culture confirmation of type of Escherichia coli involved in outbreaks of gastroenteritis (MMWR, September 29)  
  • California wastewater agency defends its recycled water (Monterey Herald, October 1)
• Penn State University houses huge, 60,000-plus-specimen E. coli collection (Associated Press, October 2); the Gastroenteric Disease Center website
• A layman's view: Microbes - the good, the bad, and the ugly! (North County Times, October 3)

Emergency Preparedness and Response

• CDC provides "Really Simple Syndication" for automatic notices
  Commentary: Water utilities may want to look into this CDC opportunity to get automatic heads-up information on a variety of biological, chemical, and radiological issues or problems via RSS. Lots of other good information at the CDC's emergency site.

Small Water System Compliance

• Water quality and compliance issues for Brevard County, FL, are highlighted in newspaper series (Florida Today, October 1 and 2) (Note: See sidebars in the two articles for additional links on this subject)
  • Small systems and mobile home parks have more problems
  • CCRs are "too rosy" and enforcement may be lacking 
• New York town eliminates seven problematical SWS with new distribution system and sequestering treatment (Ithaca Journal, October 3)
  Commentary: This looks like a classic example of EPA's recommended strategy for providing safe drinking water capacity through consolidation of multiple small systems.

Lead

• Small Maine system's very high lead levels (related to low pH from new arsenic-removal IX treatment) begin to drop with new pH balancing system (Kennebec Journal, September 28)
• New Jersey school board approves polyphosphate treatment... IF additional lead tests show it is needed (Salem Today's Sunbeam, October 3)

Disinfection Byproducts

• New Hampshire town's TTHM levels almost twice the MCL (Union Leader, September 30)

Perchlorate

• Research report: Where did the perchlorate come from? Which source is most important to the food chain? (Abstract, ACS, September 27); fertilizer from Chile puts perchlorate on the table (Environmental Science and Technology, September 27)
• U.S. Senate approves $25 million perchlorate cleanup funding for California's Santa Ana and Santa Clara groundwater basins (CBS5, September 30); some of that money could go to install treatment on another Morgan Hill city well as perchlorate increased to 4 ppb, below proposed California MCL (Gilroy Dispatch, September 30)

Water Treatment

• California city moves ahead with planned $13 million GAC - IX treatment plant to remove VOCs and nitrate (Pasadena Star-News, October 3)

Water Security

• Congress passes stop-gap chemical plant security measure (Chemical and Engineering News, October 2) which excludes water utilities as requested by water system advocacy groups but Democrats blast the legislation: Congressman Markey of Massachusetts and Senators Obama and Lautenberg say the measure is too weak

NEWS CONTINUES BELOW

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Carbon Tetrachloride

• Madison, WI, explores options for a key well with carbon tetrachloride and manganese problems (Wisconsin State Journal, October 3)

Harmful Algae Blooms (HABs)

• Researchers concerned about unknowns related to toxins from cyanobacteria in Florida waters (Sarasota Herald-Tribune, October 1); CDC's HAB website has more information

Radiological

• Colorado town's Double D! solution to elevated uranium: Dilution (with neighbor's low-U water) and Dual-water system for outdoor use (Fort Morgan Times, September 28)
• Duke University will host October 4 workshop on health risks of radon in North Carolina groundwater (Duke News, September 28)

Private Wells

• State of Washington brochure: Important Information for Private Well Owners (PDF file, 227K)

Pesticides

• Safety of Maui water debated despite expert panel's assurances (Honolulu Advertiser, September 29)
  Commentary: Customers, local officials, and drinking water/public health regulators in Hawaii discuss whether it is "safe" to use water sources contaminated with pesticides, like DBCP and EDB, with reliable treatment (GAC) to remove the chemicals below regulated levels.

Water Reuse

• WateReuse Foundation issues RFPs for research projects; due November 14
• "Opportunities and Challenges in Agricultural Water Reuse" conference October 29-31 in Santa Rosa, CA

Desalination

• Desalination meeting in Monterey, CA, looks at issues and options, including ship-borne treatment systems (Monterey County Herald, September 28)
• California coastal watchdog agency rejects initial permit application for San Diego county desalting plant, but proponents remain optimistic (North County Times, October 3)

Arsenic

• Arsenic barrier planned by Montana lead smelter plant (Helena Independent Record, September 28)

MTBE

• ExxonMobil decides to stop providing bottled water initiated by groundwater contamination, much to chagrin of homeowners and the state (Baltimore Sun, September 30)
• Chemicals injected into contaminated Pennsylvania ground water to stimulate bio-degradation of MTBE (Wilkes Barre Times Leader, October 2)
• Whodunit? City off the hook; county is still in hot seat as source of New York MTBE problem (Middletown Times Herald-Record, September 29)
• Another Maryland gas station, more MTBE in groundwater (Baltimore Sun, September 29)

Conferences

• AMWA's annual meeting starts October 15 in Charleston, SC

International

• NAS gets grant to develop virtual, multimedia exhibit on need for safe drinking water around the world (National Academies, September 28)
• Two large Chinese chemical plants responsible for arsenic discharges, but it's two environmental protection officials who get fired (International Herald Tribune, October 3)
• Local Jamaican health agency promises better monitoring of small systems, but says "burials" created no problem (Jamaica Observer, October 3)

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