It’s OK, Drink the Toxic Water

That’s what they’re saying . . .

Madison Water Utility Statement on Hexavalent Chromium
Madison—In response to a report by the national Environmental Working Group on possible chromium-6 contamination in water, the Madison Water Utility wants to emphasize that our water is safe to drink, according to General Manager Tom Heikkinen.

“Madison’s drinking water meets or exceeds all current standards mandated by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, and we have never had a drinking water violation,” said Heikkinen. “Our water is routinely tested for nearly 200 chemical substances. The amount of testing performed by Madison as part of its water quality monitoring exceeds the regulatory requirements established by the EPA and the Wisconsin DNR.”

No water utility has the resources to test for the thousands of substances in our environment, many occurring naturally, that are now able to be detected at micro levels by new scientific methods. Therefore we continue to support research by the EPA, the Water Research Foundation, and other government and scientific organizations. The EPA is currently evaluating new data about chromium 6, and those results are expected in 2011.

The Environmental Working Group is an advocacy group, not a scientific organization. A single sample from one tap does not represent the whole water system, nor have scientists determined at what level hexavalent chromium in drinking water affects humans. Even so, the utility is planning to test for hexavalent chromium so that we can provide the public with that information.

Madison Water Utility remains committed to providing clean, healthy, and safe drinking water to our customers.

Where’d the toxic material come from? Here’s a brief description from the OSHA website:

Chromium hexavalent (CrVI) compounds, often called hexavalent chromium, exist in several forms. Industrial uses of hexavalent chromium compounds include chromate pigments in dyes, paints, inks, and plastics; chromates added as anticorrosive agents to paints, primers, and other surface coatings; and chromic acid electroplated onto metal parts to provide a decorative or protective coating. Hexavalent chromium can also be formed when performing “hot work” such as welding on stainless steel or melting chromium metal. In these situations the chromium is not originally hexavalent, but the high temperatures involved in the process result in oxidation that converts the chromium to a hexavalent state.

I don’t think I like the attitude of the Water Utility. I’d rather hear that they are looking into the matter, doing more testing and deciding what wells it is coming from. Or, I’d like to hear why this isn’t a toxic level and more about what chromium in the water does to you. Simply meeting the EPA and DNR mandated standards is good, but as technology changes and we learn more, we should be informed by that information and not dismiss it. I’d rather have the standard be that the water would not be harmful. Looks like not much has changed at the water utility.