Perchlorate Has Been Detected in Drinking Water in 26 States

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According to a recent news release by US NewsWire, Perchlorate has been detected in drinking water in 26 states and Puerto Rico, according to an occurrence study released February 9, 2005 by the American Water Works Association (AWWA). The AWWA report says, "Most detections are at levels below 12 micrograms per liter."

What's The Concern About Perchlorate In Drinking Water?

According to the California Dept. of Health, perchlorate can interfere with iodide uptake by the thyroid gland. This can result in decreased production of thyroid hormones, which are needed for prenatal and postnatal growth and development, as well as for normal metabolism and mental function in the adult.

What Is Perchlorate?

According to the USA Dept. of Defense, perchlorate (Cl04-) is both a man-made and naturally occurring compound. In solid form, it is a type of salt. Perchlorate dissolves easily and moves quickly in groundwater and surface water. Once dissolved in water it remains in water for a very long time.

Ammonium perchlorate is an efficient and stable oxidizer used in solid fuel for rockets and missiles.

The USA Environmental Protection Agency has established an official reference dose for perchlorate which is consistent with the recommended reference dose included in the National Academy of Science’s January 2005 report. A reference dose is a scientific estimate of a daily exposure level that is not expected to cause adverse health effects in humans.

The reference dose will be used in EPA's ongoing efforts to address perchlorate in drinking water. It is important to note that the reference dose in EPA's draft assessment represents a preliminary estimate of a protective health level and is not a drinking water standard.

According to the EPA, wastes from the manufacture and improper disposal of perchlorate-containing chemicals are increasingly being discovered in soil and water.

Wired News reports, "More recently, perchlorate has been detected in the majority of the nation's milk and lettuce supply. High concentrations of the chemical are thought to disrupt the thyroid gland, which regulates metabolism and is linked to the development of motor skills in children."

Their report is based on a study released in November 2004 by the FDA in which 94% of the milk and lettuce samples tested revealed perchlorate contamination. Though the FDA study didn't explore how perchlorate gets into lettuce or milk, scientists believe it enters the water stream through industrial leaks. It is then thought to be taken up by, and concentrated in, plants and animals.

In the above referenced report survey, the FDA found an average concentration of 5.76 parts per billion of perchlorate in the 104 milk samples it studied. In 128 samples of green leaf, red leaf, iceberg and romaine lettuce, the agency found an average concentration of 10.49 parts per billion.

What Are Considered "Safe" Limits For Perchlorate?

Adults can tolerate nearly 25 times more of the potentially toxic chemical perchlorate in their drinking water than previously thought, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said on Friday, Feb. 19, 2005.

According to the new EPA guideline, humans can consume up to 0.7 micrograms of perchlorate per day for each kilogram of body weight without experiencing "adverse health effects." Based on the assumption that a 70-kilogram (154-pound) adult drinks 2 liters of water each day, the EPA estimates that 24.5 parts of perchlorate to 1 billion parts of water is a safe limit for water quality.

EPA spokeswoman Cynthia Bergman stressed that 24.5 ppb is just a preliminary figure and added that it was based on the findings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Bill Walker, vice president of the Environmental Working Group's West Coast operations stated in November 2004, people with existing thyroid problems and pregnant women should monitor the total amount of perchlorate they ingest each day.

"We found that there are some people out there -- like the 1.6 million people of child-bearing age -- who are eating a diet very heavy in lettuce," he said. "This could be exceeding the EPA's recommended safe dose."

What Actions Are Being Taken By The Dept. of Defense (DoD) Regarding Perchlorate?

The DoD has an entire task force dedicated to perchlorate.

They have been working collaboratively with EPA, DOE, NASA and a variety of other federal, state, local and tribal entities since the 1990s to better understand and address perchlorate.

DoD has spent $59 million to date on the following initiatives:

• perchlorate detection methods,

• perchlorate occurrence studies,

• human health effects studies,

• pollution prevention measures

• treatment technologies, and

• site assessment and cleanup efforts

The two types of perchlorate most frequently used by DoD are ammonium perchlorate and potassium perchlorate. Ammonium perchlorate is used in rocket and missile propellants. Potassium perchlorate is used as an oxidizer in pyrotechnics such as training simulators, flares, hand grenade delays, and aircraft countermeasures.

Today, DoD makes every effort to prevent releases of perchlorate into the environment.



Sources:

AWWA Government Affairs - Perchlorate Occurrence Report - PDF file [2.8MB Download Size - Adobi Acrobat Required]

US NewsWire MediaLink Worldwide - Perchlorate Detected in Drinking Water in 26 States...

Dept. Of Defense Percholate Workgroup - Percholate Facts

USA Environmental Protection Agency - Perchlorate

USA Environmental Protection Agency - Perchlorate and Perchlorate Salts Risk Information

Wired News - EPA Sets Perchlorate Guideline

Wired News - Rocket Fuel in Milk, Lettuce

California Dept. Of Health Services - Perchlorate in California Drinking Water:
Overview and Links

USA Food And Drug Administration - Perchlorate Questions and Answers

USA Food And Drug Administration - Exploratory Data on Perchlorate in Food

California State-wide Summary of Perchlorate-Contaminated Sites - Joint GEOTRACKER SWRCB And DTSC Perchlorate Confirmed Contaminant Site Data