This week's NEWS

New lead legislation is introduced: Is the devil lurking in the details? Yes, Georgia, AC pipe can be a problem! Caustic soda overdose at water treatment plant sends dozens to hospital. Relatively speaking: To fail to sample is a misdemeanor; to lie about it is a felony! Congressional committee hears the whys and why nots (from EPA) of perchlorate standard-setting.

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Federal Updates

• The "official" USEPA determination not to regulate 11 of 51 contaminants on CCL2 nor perchlorate (Federal Register, May 1)

Perchlorate

• House Committee on Energy and Commerce's May 25 hearing on perchlorate: Webcast and testimony are available, including USEPA's AA Grumbles statement (PDF file, 41.4 K) and a dissenting view from Connecticut DPH (PDF file, 93.9 K)
• An example of the media's selective coverage of the hearing... and of the public (commenters') selective hearing of the coverage! (ABC News, April 28)

State Newsletters

• Alaska's Spring Northern Flows (PDF file, 2.47 MB)
• Maine's Spring Service Connection  (PDF file, 428 K)

National Drinking Water Week

• National Drinking Water Week is May 6-12

Water Treatment

• Madison, WI, has second chlorinator failure within a month (Madison Commons, April 27)
• Alberta, Canada, city adds GAC and upgrades UV at its water treatment plant (Camrose Canadian, April 29); Camrose's existing facilities
• Tampa Water selects DBO firm to build 120-MGD treatment plant (Tampa Bay Business Journal, May 1)
• Overdose of caustic at Massachusetts city's water treatment plant:
  • Water plant malfunction in Spencer sends 93 to hospitals (Boston Globe, April 26) 
  • "Do not use" order lifted in Spencer, but a boil water advisory is in effect (Boston Herald, April 26)  
  • State lifts the BWA as bacterial tests come back OK 
  • Other Massachusetts utilities describe precautions taken to prevent any treatment chemical overdose in their systems (Brockton Enterprise, April 28)

Microbiological

• The number of confirmed crypto cases in Galway, Ireland, increases (RTE News, April 30); precautions in health-care facilities described; few cases may have originated before BWA in effect (Irish Medical News, April 30)

Public Notification

• Kansas town tells customers the samples didn't get delivered! (KC Community News, April 25); the city's notice (PDF file, 57.4 K)
  Commentary: An informed public is a great asset and the changes in state/federal laws requiring public notification of violations did, in fact, have an initial salutary effect on rates of compliance. However, reading a notice like this makes one wonder what benefit accrued to these consumers.

Legal Issues

• Utah Supreme Court asked to apply "private attorney general" doctrine to paying legal costs for fluoridation supporters (Salt Lake Tribune, April 26)

Water Violations

• Manager of small New Hampshire system gets hefty fine for falsifying test report (Fosters Daily Democrat, April 30)
  Commentary: Once again we see that often the sin is not what's important, but rather the cover-up! (Remember that "second-rate burglary at the Watergate!")
• 85-year-old owner of small Georgia water systems jailed for contempt of court after multiple SDWA violations (Macon Telegraph, April 30)

Fluoridation

• Mississippi town is not being "Picayune" about getting fluoride to its customers (Picayune Item, April 28)
• Oregon fluoridation-mandate bill takes a baby-step forward (Oregonian, April 28); Oregon House Bill 3099 (PDF file, 24.5 K)
  Commentary: One legislator said he was undecided until his wife, the daughter of a dentist, told him: "If you do not support fluoridation of water, I cannot support your re-election."  Now, THAT is effective lobbying!

Security

• AMWA and Corps of Engineers present two more workshops on the vulnerability of water systems to explosive blasts: Kansas City in June; Arizona in August (PDF file, 178 K)

Arsenic

• West Bengalese said to have arsenic "addiction" and "taste for the water of death" (Khaleej Times, April 27)

NEWS CONTINUES BELOW

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Disinfection Byproducts

• USEPA orders Navy to reduce TTHM levels at California island naval base (USEPA Region IX release, April 23)

MTBE

• New Hampshire city plans ahead as MTBE plume threatens its wells (Fosters Daily Democrat, April 26)
• Oil companies push for Texas MTBE legislation to grant them what they couldn't get in U.S. Congress: Immunity! (Fort Worth Star-Telegram, April 30); Texas House Bill 1927 (PDF file, 16.5 K)
• Exxon Mobil repays $2 million for state's remediation of numerous New Hampshire sites (Fosters Daily Democrat, May 1)

Lead and Copper

• The "Lead-Free Drinking Water Act of 2007" has been introduced (Note: the bill language is not yet available but will be soon at this site.)
• Concerns raised about lack of blood testing in Canadian city with elevated levels in water (London Free Press, April 28)
• D.C. parents want USEPA to force more school lead testing (Washington Post, April 28)
• Small Montana town council approves orthophosphate treatment to reduce copper in face of state enforcement threat; citizens' group opposes plan (Helena Independent Record, May 1)

Radium

• Wisconsin water utility looks at 22% rate increase in part to pay for radium removal (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, April 27)

Asbestos

• Deteriorating AC pipe in Georgia town results in violations of asbestos drinking water standard (Atlanta Journal Constitution, April 29)
  Commentary: When samples are found that are 3000+ times above the MCL, maybe pipeline replacement is in order. But that requires lots of money ...and a long timeline?

Tungsten

• Massachusetts challenges U.S. Army toxicologists' conclusions on tungsten toxicity (Cape Cod Times, April 27)

Desalination

• National Academies WSTB's Advancing Desalination Technology Committee 4th meeting is May 7-9 in Denver
• Floating deep-sea ocean desalter seeks FDA approval... so they must plan to bottle it? (KGMB 9 News, April 30)

Bottled Water

• It's not bottled vs. tap! It's bottled water vs. everything else in a bottle! (Forbes, April 30)

Water Reuse

• WateReuse Association has a database of U.S. water reuse facilities
• Chair of Queensland, AU, expert panel on reuse says crisis created acceptance of direct use of recycled water (Brisbane Times, May 1)

PFCs

• Minnesota legislature sends bill requiring health limits on PFCs to governor (Pioneer Press, April 30); the bill is SF 1105
• Negotiation gets nod over "Superfund" designation as Minnesota pursues landfill cleanups with 3M (La Crosse Tribune, April 30)
• PFC chemicals were on 3M's environmental radar 24 years ago (Minneapolis Star Tribune, April 24)

International

• Abstracts of articles in IWA Journal of Water and Health, Volume 5
  • Assessment of the chemical quality of drinking water in Cambodia  
  • Unsafe tap water in households supplied from ground water in the Salento Region of Southern Italy

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