Help us urge Governor Newsom to use his influence to protect all Californians from cancer!
Hexavalent chromium has been detected in drinking water sources in 53 of California’s 58 counties, putting millions of people at risk for cancer. Given how dangerous hexavalent chromium is, state scientists set the public health goal (PHG- the level at which you wouldn’t expect to see significant health risks) at 0.02 parts per billion. Yet after years of delay the State Water Board is proposing an enforceable drinking water standard of 10 ppb. That is 500 times over what is considered safe and will leave over 80% of impacted water systems – and an estimated 11 million Californians – without protective water treatment.
This proposal is all about money. Polluters don’t want to be held liable for the harm they cause. Some water systems don’t want to install expensive treatment, even though they’ve had 2 decades to plan for this and there are lower cost options that could be employed by many water providers.
With the State Water Board prioritizing costs over human life, we need the Governor to step in. Please contact him today and help us stop a really bad standard for hexavalent chromium.
To learn more about hexavalent chromium in California, go to https://cleanwater.org/dangers-hexavalent-chromium-chromium-6-california-drinking-water
