Chemical In San Jose Drinking Water Under Debate On Capitol Hill
SAN JOSE (KCBS) - A Capitol Hill hearing got underway Wednesday morning on the need for a national standard to address chromium 6 water contamination. This comes after a recent study detected the toxin in San Jose's drinking water supply.
KCBS' Matt Bigler Reports:
The survey of 35 cities found that 31 of them, including San Jose, had chromium 6 in the tap water. The toxin has been found to cause cancer in lab rats, but Dr. Thomas Burke, associate dean of the John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health testified before the committee Wednesday morning, said that this doesn't mean people should rush to have their water tested.
"This is not an acute emergency, this is one of those things that as a nation we have to think about, and figure out how we can strategize to reduce not just chromium, but pharmaceuticals and other things," said Burke.
Senators Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein have introduced a bill that would require the Environmental Protection Agency to set limits on the amount of chromium 6 in the nation's drinking water.
Boxer pointed out Wednesday that California recently raised its goal for limiting chromium 6 contamination from .06 to .02 parts per billion.
"This is based on the need to protect infants and children from dangerous substances," said Boxer.
The EPA announced Wednesday morning that it will set a national drinking water standard for perchlorate, a toxic chemical found in rocket fuel.
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