Water quality boards seek to manage nitrate contamination
Posted by: Maven on February 3, 2012 at 8:30 amFrom the California Watch:
“It started in 2001 and mostly affected the very young and very old. Peoples’ hair would fall out, their skin would break out in rashes and their eyes would turn red after showers.
“That was how people were hurt on the outside,” said Horacio Amezquita, manager of the San Jerardo Cooperative, which houses about 250 low-income people in Salinas. “On the inside, we don’t know.”
Amezquita, a former farm worker, has lived at the cooperative for 33 years. Many of the residents work on nearby farms that use nitrogen-based fertilizers to help crops grow.
But the fertilizers that keep these farms in business leach into the soil and drinking water. … “
Continue reading from California Watch by clicking here.
California Dental Association pulls funding to fluoridate Watsonville’s water
Posted by: Maven on February 3, 2012 at 7:29 amFrom the Contra Costa Times:
“Fluoride won’t be flowing from city taps — at least not in the foreseeable future.
Thursday, the California Dental Association Foundation announced it would not pay to install a water fluoridation system as the price tag escalated well beyond original estimates.
That effectively ended a decade of often bitter debate over the project aimed at improving the community’s oral health, though backers vow to continue the effort.
“I believe this eliminates the city of Watsonville from being forced to fluoridate city water,” said Councilman Daniel Dodge. “It’s dead.” … “
Continue reading from the Contra Costa Times by clicking here.
Commentary: Ensuring clean water for the future
Posted by: Maven on January 29, 2012 at 8:44 amFrom the Santa Clarita Signal, this commentary by Maria Gutzeit, president of the Newhall County Water District:
“How often do you think about your tap water? If you are like most of us in the Santa Clarita Valley, it’s not often. Recent polls suggest that since California’s drought ended, public interest in conservation and other water matters has dropped significantly.
To some, complacency or apathy about tap water suggests public utilities are doing a good job at delivering a clean, reliable and affordable resource to your homes and businesses. To others, such as me and others in the water sector, the value of tap water needs to be in the forefront of everyone’s minds. … “
Continue reading this commentary at the Santa Clarita Signal by clicking here.
Efforts to bring clean water to Tulare County
Posted by: Maven on January 26, 2012 at 7:23 amFrom KFSN:
“The effort to bring healthy water to Valley towns moved forward Wednesday after federal officials heard directly from residents about the ongoing problem.
Members of the Environmental Protection Agency toured parts of the Valley, in hopes of getting a closer look at just how bad people’s drinking water is.
The water coming out of the faucet may look clean, but Seville resident Rebecca Quintana says it’s filled with unhealthy levels of nitrates and bacteria.
Rebecca Quintana said, “We don’t have that luxury of just turning on the water and being able to drink or cook.” … “
Continue reading from KFSN by clicking here, or watch the newscast below.
Nuclear power plants threaten drinking water for 2.3 million Californians
Posted by: Maven on January 25, 2012 at 7:49 amFrom YubaNet.com:
“The drinking water for 2.3 million people in California could be at risk of radioactive contamination from a leak or accident at a local nuclear power plant, says a new study released today by the California Public Interest Research Group Education Fund and Environment California Research and Policy Center.
“The danger of nuclear power is too close to home. Here in California, the drinking water for 2.3 million people is too close to an active nuclear power plant,” said Emily Rusch, CALPIRG Education Fund State Director. “An accident or a leak could spew cancer-causing radioactive waste into our drinking water.”
The nuclear meltdown in Fukushima, Japan last year drew a spotlight on the many risks associated with nuclear power. After the disaster, airborne radiation left areas around the plant uninhabitable, and even contaminated drinking water sources near Tokyo, 130 miles from the plant. … “
Continue reading from YubaNet.com by clicking here.
Nitrogen pollution impacts & solutions: Report highlights new research and offers solutions for a nitrogen-soaked world
Posted by: Maven on January 22, 2012 at 7:31 amFrom Medical News Today:
“The nitrogen cycle has been profoundly altered by human activities, and that in turn is affecting human health, air and water quality, and biodiversity in the U.S., according to a multi-disciplinary team of scientists writing in the 15th publication of the Ecological Society of America’s Issues in Ecology. In “Excess Nitrogen in the U.S. Environment: Trends, Risks, and Solutions,” lead author Eric Davidson (Woods Hole Research Center) and 15 colleagues from universities, government, and the private sector review the major sources of reactive nitrogen in the U.S., resulting effects on health and the environment, and potential solutions.
Nitrogen is both an essential nutrient and a pollutant, a byproduct of fossil fuel combustion and a fertilizer that feeds billions, a benefit and a hazard, depending on form, location, and quantity. … “
Continue reading from Medical News Today by clicking here.
Barstow: Perchlorate cleanup to begin as early as February
Posted by: Maven on January 9, 2012 at 6:31 amFrom the Victorville Daily Press:
“Environmental Protection Agency officials say they are strategizing with local officials to organize the cleanup of soil contaminated with perchlorate said to be the root cause of water contamination discovered in 2010.
The cleanup could start as early as February, depending on which strategies are determined to be most effective, according to William Duncan III of the EPA. The EPA will be discussing the cleanup with the Barstow City Council and Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board. … “
Continue reading from the Victorville Daily Press by clicking here.
Perchlorate cleanup could begin as early as February
Posted by: Maven on January 6, 2012 at 7:25 amFrom the Desert Dispatch:
“Environmental Protection Agency officials say they are strategizing with local officials to organize cleanup of soil contaminated with perchlorate said to be the root cause of water contamination discovered in 2010.
According to William Duncan III with the EPA, the cleanup could start as early as February depending on what strategies are determined to be most effective. The EPA will be discussing the cleanup with area agencies, including the Barstow City Council and the Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board. … “
Continue reading from the Desert Dispatch by clicking here.
Safe drinking water is a holiday wish for some California communities
Posted by: Maven on December 22, 2011 at 8:03 amFrom the Public News Service:
“Safe drinking water is at the top of the holiday wish list for some Californians. For years, residents of Seville and other San Joaquin Valley communities have been forced to buy bottled water because their tap water is polluted with nitrate – a clear, odorless compound that has been linked to cancer. Juliette de Campos, policy advocate with the Community Water Center (CWC) says residents are spending more than 10 percent of their income on bottled drinking water, as well as paying their monthly water bill. … “
Continue reading from the Public News Service by clicking here.
Eastern Municipal passes higher costs to customers
Posted by: Maven on December 22, 2011 at 7:00 amFrom the Riverside Press-Enterprise:
“Most typical residential customers of Eastern Municipal Water District will see about a $2 a month increase in their water bills to be sent out in February for their January water use.
The district staved off the rate hike until now by containing higher costs in the past two years by turning to other sources to cover supply costs. … “
Continue reading from the Riverside Press-Enterprise by clicking here.
Costs mount for Glendale’s ongoing inquiry into chromium 6
Posted by: Maven on December 20, 2011 at 7:08 amFrom the Los Angeles Times:
“The costs keep piling up as a project to study chromium 6 removal becomes a bigger expense than expected for Glendale, which has been trudging through nine years of research to strip the cancer-causing contaminant from groundwater.
Although the City Council last week approved spending an additional $400,000 to continue research at two testing facilities — just two months after the council gave the green light to spend $550,000 in grant and state funding on more research — some city officials are getting antsy.
“This has been going on for a number of years,” said Councilman Rafi Manoukian. “I want to get this thing done and over with.” … “
Continue reading from the Los Angeles Times by clicking here.
Water boards attempt to manage state-wide nitrate problem
Posted by: Maven on December 15, 2011 at 9:07 amFrom HealthyCal.org:
“It started in 2001, and mostly affected the very young and the very old. Peoples’ hair would fall out, their skin would break out in rashes and their eyes would turn red after showers.
“That was how people were hurt on the outside,” said Horacio Amezquita, manager of the San Jerardo Cooperative. “On the inside, we don’t know.”
Amezquita, a former farm worker, lives at the cooperative, which houses about 250 low-income people. Many of the residents work on nearby farms that use nitrogen-based fertilizers to help crops grow.
But the very fertilizers that keep these farms in business leach into the soil and into the drinking water. … “
Continue reading from HealthyCal.org by clicking here.
Hinkley’s plume of contamination appears to be migrating northward at a much faster rate
Posted by: Maven on December 14, 2011 at 7:23 amFrom the San Bernardino Sun:
“The plume of chromium 6 contamination in this unincorporated community eight miles west of Barstow has leaped a mile in a year, according to maps released by the Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board.
Traditionally the plume has migrated about a foot per day, said Lisa Dernbach, senior engineering geologist with the water board.
“We surprised by the movement of the plume in the last last year,” Dernbach said during a question and answer session following a town meeting hosted by the water board at Hinkley Elementary School late last week. … “
Continue reading from the San Bernardino Sun by clicking here.
Water-quality standards unfairly burden rural communities
Posted by: Maven on December 12, 2011 at 8:26 amFrom the High Country News:
“When Clarence Aragon began managing the half-century-old Mora Mutual Water and Sewer Association 12 years ago, he thought he was helping the environment. Hundreds of households around Mora, N.M. — a small river-valley community on the eastern slope of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains — flush wastewater through subpar septic systems, sending trickles of variably treated sewage into a shallow aquifer and eventually to the Mora River. But Aragon’s 1,000 or so subscribers employ one of rural New Mexico’s few treatment plants, a system of lagoons that oxygenate the water while special bacteria digest harmful sludge.
The system isn’t perfect, Aragon admits: The lagoons need repairs, and even when they’re working properly, they weren’t designed to reduce algae-fueling nutrients — nitrogen and phosphorous — enough to meet up-to-date water-quality standards. But building a treatment plant to meet those standards, which originated in a 1997 environmentalist lawsuit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, would cost around $7 million.
“This is a community with zero economy and 25 percent unemployment,” Aragon says. “Even if someone were to write me a check for (that system), we couldn’t afford to run it.” … “
Continue reading from the High Country News by clicking here.
Analysis: U.S. Congress attacks drinking water
Posted by: Maven on December 9, 2011 at 7:56 amFrom the Environment News Service:
“This year, residents of Midland, Texas sued Dow Chemical for dangerous levels of hexavalent chromium in their drinking water. Chromium-6 is a cancer-causing chemical made infamous by Julia Roberts’ film, “Erin Brockovich.” There are currently no drinking water standards for chromium-6, and the chemical industry is delaying a new U.S. Environmental Protection Agency assessment labeling it a potent carcinogen.
This is far from an isolated scenario, threats to the public drinking water supply are national in scope. From the 1950s to the 1980s, trichloroethylene, a carcinogenic metal degreaser, lurked, undetected, in the drinking water at North Carolina’s Fort Lejeune – affecting up to one million marines and their families.
California’s San Joaquin River and San Francisco Bay Delta are contaminated with selenium and mercury. … “
Continue reading from the Environment News Service by clicking here.
Los Angeles County study: Bottled water is safe
Posted by: Maven on December 2, 2011 at 7:27 amFrom the Santa Clarita Signal:
“Contrary to concerns raised last summer about the standards for bottled drinking water sold in Los Angeles County, scientists told county supervisors Tuesday that the water is safe to drink.
Still, Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich, who raised the initial concern, accepted the report from the Environmental Toxicology Bureau of Los Angeles County’s Department of Agricultural Commissioner/Weights and Measures with conditions: Quarterly reports must be made, including Health Department findings and actions taken to address water quality issues. … “
Continue reading from the Santa Clarita Signal by clicking here.
Water quality improvement for small California communities, says commentary
Posted by: Maven on November 29, 2011 at 7:46 amFrom the Fresno Bee, this commentary by Ron Chapman, director of the California Department of Public Health:
“Recently, I joined Assembly Member Henry T. Perea and local leaders on a visit to the Tulare County communities of Cutler, Orosi and East Orosi — communities that are struggling to provide safe, clean drinking water to the region.
As the newly appointed state public health officer, I wanted to hear first-hand from the individuals and families who have deep concerns about the availability of clean drinking water and the impact on their health.
I learned a great deal during my visit and I’m encouraged by the public private partnership formed between various entities working toward the common goal of improving water quality for local communities.
Water quality improvement needs exist throughout California. A recent U.S. Environmental Protection Agency study calculated the national need for drinking water improvements at $324 billion; California’s share of this need is $39 billion. … “
Continue reading from the Fresno Bee by clicking here.
Mercury News editorial: Santa Clara Valley Water District board shows courage in approving fluoride
Posted by: Maven on November 25, 2011 at 6:47 amFrom the Silicon Valley Mercury News, this editorial:
“It’s never easy to stand up to strident opposition, even to do what’s right. So hats off to the Santa Clara Valley Water District board for voting unanimously this month to fluoridate its water.
While opponents of fluoride link it to everything from pitted teeth to the Manhattan Project, scientific study supports its success in dramatically reducing cavities for children and dental deterioration for the elderly. That’s why a wide range of community groups came out to support the cause, including FIRST 5 Santa Clara County, PACT, the Health Trust, the Silicon Valley Leadership Group and county public health officials. … “
Continue reading from the Silicon Valley Mercury News by clicking here.
Santa Clara: Fluoridation of water treatment plants, wells gets board support
Posted by: Maven on November 23, 2011 at 6:11 amFrom the Silicon Valley Mercury News:
“Smiles in the West Valley might get a little brighter in the next few years.
On Nov. 15, the Santa Clara Valley Water District board of directors unanimously voted to adopt new policy language to support fluoridation at each of the district’s three water treatment plants in Los Gatos, east San Jose and the Almaden Valley and three district-owned water supply wells located in Campbell.
According to a release from the district, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recognizes water fluoridation as one of 10 great public health achievements of the 20th century. Studies from the CDC show that widespread community water fluoridation prevents cavities and improves the health of teeth. … “
Continue reading from the Silicon Valley Mercury News by clicking here.
Commentary: LA tap water: To drink or not to drink
Posted by: Maven on November 21, 2011 at 6:23 amFrom Neon Tommy (USC/Annenberg Digital News), this commentary:
“Ask the average American to visualize a quintessential 1950s panorama, a Back to the Future-like glimpse of the nation’s self-proclaimed “Golden Age,” and odds are they’ll paint a similar setting.
Scenes from Gary Ross’s Pleasantville instantly come to mind. Corner diners, packed to the brim with sociable, young teens, gorging themselves with cherry-topped chocolate malts, sporting pink poodle skirts and t-bird leather jackets. Automobiles of a feel-good era – the embodiment of the American Dream. The Chevy Corvettes and Starliner Coupes of a bygone era. The drive-through movies and drive-through diners. Suburbia in its infancy.
And of course, the neighborhood milkman, hand delivering quarts of cream-topped milk to the eagerly awaiting, and overtly oppressed, American housewives.
Growing up in the Los Angeles suburbs, the 21st century milkman that came to our carried something a bit less nostalgic and arguably, somewhat absurd: gallons of bottled water. … “
Continue reading from Neon Tommy by clicking here.
House committee approves Baca’s bill to study perchlorate contamination
Posted by: Maven on November 18, 2011 at 7:19 amFrom the Examiner:
“A San Bernardino County representative’s bill to study water contamination of a rocket fuel additive is one step closer to passage after a House committee approved it on Thursday.
Rep. Joe Baca (D-Rialto) introduced H.R. 200, the Inland Empire Perchlorate Ground Water Plume Assessment Act, days after the 112th Congress began at the beginning of January. On Thursday, the House Natural Resources Committee unanimously approved the legislation, which paves the way for a vote on final passage by the entire House of Representatives. The bill would direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study of water resources and perchlorate contamination in the Inland Empire. It specifically orders the United States Geological Survey to study the Rialto-Colton water basin and the perchlorate contaminated plume found in Rialto. … “
National campaign renews push for water fluoridation: Watsonville’s treatment plan stalled
Posted by: Maven on November 17, 2011 at 8:10 amFrom the Silicon Valley Mercury News:
“A coalition of health and children’s advocacy groups on Tuesday kicked off a national campaign aimed at preventing tooth decay by increasing fluoridation of public water supplies.
The launch came just hours before the Santa Clara Valley Water District board unanimously voted in favor of fluoridating a supply that serves nearly 300,000 people.
But leaders of the new Campaign for Dental Health say opposition to the decades-old practice is growing, fueled by misinformation spread online. The campaign is countering the anti-fluoride message with a new Website: Ilikemyteeth.org. … “
Continue reading from the Silicon Valley Mercury News by clicking here.
Santa Clara Valley Water District OKs adding fluoride to its drinking water
Posted by: Maven on November 16, 2011 at 8:16 amFrom the Silicon Valley Mercury News:
“Silicon Valley’s largest drinking water provider took the first steps Tuesday toward adding fluoride to the drinking water in most of Santa Clara County, including San Jose, the largest city in the nation without the cavity-battling additive.
After a lively 90-minute debate at a packed meeting, the board of the Santa Clara Valley Water District voted 7-0 to put the district on record supporting fluoridation.
During the meeting, critics told the board that fluoride has no health benefits, is costly and can lead to problems such as fluorosis — a pitting of the teeth. But supporters outnumbered them, with dentists and public health officials calling fluoride a key step in reducing tooth decay for children, particularly low-income children without access to regular dental care. … “
Continue reading from the Silicon Valley Mercury News by clicking here.
RELATED: Science fights fluoridation: This time around, data and knowledge are trumping paranoia and ideology, commentary at the Los Angeles Times
Fresno Bee News Blog: State allows Monson to apply for water-study funds
Posted by: Maven on November 15, 2011 at 7:56 amFrom the Fresno Bee News Blog:
“There is quiet celebration in Tulare County among advocates for healthy drinking water — the state will allow the county to apply for money to study Monson’s water problems.
Monson is tiny rural town in the north county with water wells that have chronic contamination. And, while the possibility of study funds is reason to celebrate, the dirty water will keep flowing for many years. … “
Continue reading from the Fresno Bee News Blog by clicking here.
Santa Clara Valley Water District to vote on fluoridation
Posted by: Maven on November 12, 2011 at 6:41 amFrom the Silicon Valley Mercury News:
“San Jose children live in one of the top U.S. cities for college graduation, wealth and technology, but they also endure a less enviable distinction: Their city is the largest in the United States without fluoridated water.
The results show up in the mouths of thousands of kids each year at the Children’s Dental Center in East San Jose. Last year alone, dentists there completed 11,000 filings, 8,000 crowns and 7,400 root canals — for more than 6,000 patients, nearly all younger than 12.
“We really have a crisis for children — especially low-income children — in Silicon Valley, whose oral health conditions are terrible,” said Fred Ferrer, CEO of the Santa Clara County Health Trust, a non-profit group that runs one of the city’s dental clinics for children. … “
Continue reading from the Silicon Valley Mercury News by clicking here.
Fresno Bee News Blog: Emergency fix for Seville’s water on way in Tulare Co.?
Posted by: Maven on November 9, 2011 at 8:13 amFrom the Fresno Bee’s News Blog:
“The state may grant emergency funds to fix the leaking water lines in Seville, the Tulare County town where decaying pipes broke a few weeks ago and left some houses without water.
Some repairs already have been made, residents say, and water pressure is returning.
And the county has posted a large sign at the town’s only well, listing phone numbers residents can call when the antiquated water system breaks down.In a town of 400 where contamination and poor water pressure are chronic, those are victories. … “
Continue reading from the Fresno Bee News Blog by clicking here.
Update on Seville’s water: Water fix request made, now more waiting for the state
Posted by: Maven on November 4, 2011 at 7:30 amFrom the Fresno Bee:
“There’s movement in the story about the leaking, contaminated water system in the Tulare County town of Seville, which needs help to restore safe drinking water.
Last week, several houses in Seville were without water because the system broke down again. When the pressure was increased so people could get water at their homes, pipes apparently broke. … “
Continue reading from the Fresno Bee News Blog by clicking here.
San Francisco Public Utilities District: If your water stinks, don’t be alarmed
Posted by: Maven on November 2, 2011 at 7:19 amFrom the San Francisco Chronicle:
“Just because your tap water stinks and tastes bad doesn’t mean it is dangerous to drink, the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission says after dozens of people complained about a musty aroma and odd flavor.
There is blue-green algae in the water, but not enough to cause any health problems, according to Andrew DeGrace, the water quality division director for the commission.
“We’re saying that people should not be concerned,” DeGrace said. “The levels we are talking about it are so small that it is not a health related issue.” … “
Continue reading from the San Francisco Chronicle by clicking here.
SEE ALSO: Smelly Tap Water to Flow for Another Week, from the Bay-Citizen
Whittier: Opening of NASA-funded water-treatment plant celebrated
Posted by: Maven on October 20, 2011 at 9:04 pmFrom the Whittier Daily News:
“Raising glasses of perchlorate-free water, city, state, federal and NASA officials toasted the official opening of the $8.5 million Monk Hill Water Treatment Plant in northwest Pasadena on Thursday.
“It tastes wonderful,” said Phyllis Currie, who has overseen what she called the “massive cleanup” project during her entire 10-year tenure as general manager of Pasadena Water and Power. … “
Continue reading from the Whittier Daily News by clicking here.
Monday’s top of the scroll: Enviromental group says SoCal Gas pollutes L.A. water
Posted by: Maven on October 17, 2011 at 7:21 amFrom the Courthouse News Service:
“The Environmental Law Foundation claims Southern California Gas Co. injected so much natural gas into its giant underground storage field, 1 mile deep under Los Angeles, that the gas migrated into the city’s drinking water and polluted it with chemicals that cause cancer and birth defects.
The environmental group claims the San Diego-based gas company pumped “increasingly greater volumes of natural gas” into the 240-acre formation, 6,000 feet deep under Playa del Rey, from 1956 until the mid-1980s, though it knew of the environmental damage it would cause as early as 1942.
It claims the gas company polluted drinking water with carcinogenic benzene, toluene and ethylbenzene. … “
Continue reading from the Courthouse News Service by clicking here.
More communities change course on fluoride in water
Posted by: Maven on October 13, 2011 at 8:30 amFrom the New York Times:
“A growing number of communities are choosing to stop adding fluoride to their water systems, even though the federal government and federal health officials maintain their full support for a measure they say provides a 25 percent reduction in tooth decay nationwide.
Last week, Pinellas County, on Florida’s west coast, voted to stop adding fluoride to its public water supply after starting the program seven years ago. The county joins about 200 jurisdictions from Georgia to Alaska that have chosen to end the practice in the last four years, motivated both by tight budgets and by skepticism about its benefits. … “
Continue reading from the New York Times by clicking here.
Fresno: Perea vows to push drinking-water cleanup
Posted by: Maven on October 13, 2011 at 7:57 amFrom the Fresno Bee:
“Just days after Gov. Jerry Brown signed several bills geared to improving drinking water quality, Assembly Member Henry T. Perea said he will push forward and build on that foundation.
“Mark my words,” the freshman Democrat from Fresno said, “this is step one.”
Perea made the comments at a Wednesday news conference in downtown Fresno to thank Brown for signing the bills. One of those was Perea’s own Assembly Bill 983, which allows disadvantaged communities to get grants for the full cost of water infrastructure, compared to 80% under previous law. … “
Continue reading from the Fresno Bee by clicking here.
Water district using less imported water due to algae bloom in Colorado Aqueduct
Posted by: Maven on October 13, 2011 at 7:34 amFrom the Contra Costa Times:
“If you noticed your tap water tasting a bit strange lately, it’s not you, it’s algae bloom.
The Cucamonga Valley Water District, and other water agencies that rely on imported water from Northern California, has discovered algae bloom in the water supply, which causes an unusual earthy odor and taste. But district officials say the water is safe to drink.
“Algae bloom gives water an earthy taste, kind of musty,” said water district spokeswoman Kristeen Ramirez. “Some people are more sensitive to it than others. But it doesn’t have any impact in terms of health.” … “
Continue reading from the Contra Costa Times by clicking here.
Monday’s top of the scroll: Brown signs slate of clean drinking water bills
Posted by: Maven on October 10, 2011 at 7:58 amFrom California Watch:
“From arsenic to E. coli bacteria, contaminants flow from the water taps of hundreds of communities across the state. But seven bills signed into law Friday by Gov. Jerry Brown seek to improve access to clean drinking water in California, particularly for residents in rural and disadvantaged communities.
“Clean drinking water is a basic human right,” Brown said in a statement. “The bills I have signed today will help ensure that every Californian has access to clean and safe sources of water.”
According to clean-water advocates, the legislation addresses a longstanding need. … “
Continue reading from California Watch by clicking here.
Bill McEwen: Brown needs to get results for water woes
Posted by: Maven on October 9, 2011 at 7:37 amFrom the Fresno Bee, this column by Bill McEwen:
“If the need is obvious and the money is there, why make poor people suffer? This is the question for Gov. Jerry Brown following Bee reporter Mark Grossi’s three-part series on the drinking water crisis in rural San Joaquin Valley communities.
I ask because who better than Brown to fix a problem begging for leadership?
The governor has the power. And, in the past, he has shown interest in the issues that intersect in tiny Tulare County farmworker communities such as Tooleville and Seville: poverty, health, environmental protection and cutting government bureaucracy. … “
Continue reading Bill McEwen’s column at the Fresno Bee by clicking here.
Saturday’s top of the scroll: Governor Brown signs clean-water bills: Laws come on heels of plan to improve small water systems
Posted by: Maven on October 8, 2011 at 7:53 am
From the Fresno Bee:
“Gov. Jerry Brown on Friday signed seven bills aimed at improving drinking water quality. It was the second round of good news this week for people in poor Valley towns with poor drinking water, following the state agreeing to update a plan for improving small water systems.
Nitrates, arsenic and other drinking water pollutants are common in parts of the San Joaquin Valley, especially Tulare County, focus of a three-part series in The Bee earlier this week called “Don’t Drink the Water.” Efforts to solve the problem are hindered by the communities’ poverty, their inability to hold the attention of agencies that control funding and bureaucratic red tape that has delayed simple fixes. … “
Continue reading at the Fresno Bee by clicking here.
MORE:
- Brown signs bills supporting Human Right to Water, from Dan Bacher at IndyBay.org
- Brown signs Wolk clean water bill, from the Daily Democrat
- Governor Signs Legislation on Drinking Water, from ACWA’s Water News
Settlement: California to prepare drinking water plan
Posted by: Maven on October 7, 2011 at 8:40 amFrom the San Francisco Chronicle:
“California health officials have settled a lawsuit over a plan to improve the state’s drinking water.
The settlement, announced Thursday, requires the California Department of Public Health to prepare and submit to the legislature within three years a “Safe Drinking Water Plan.” … “
Continue reading from the San Francisco Chronicle by clicking here.
State of the Planet blog: Pharmaceuticals in the water supply: Is this a threat?
Posted by: Maven on October 6, 2011 at 8:04 amFrom the State of the Planet blog:
“Recent studies by the United States Government Accountability Office and the Environmental Protection Agency found numerous instances of pharmaceuticals in drinking water. According to the GAO, a “study focused on untreated source water used by public drinking water systems” found that 53 of 74 sites tested had at least one pharmaceutical present, and in 2010 the EPA showed that 54 active pharmaceutical ingredients and 10 metabolites, the product of biological changes to a chemical, had been found in treated drinking water. An earlier study from 2005 by the EPA and the Geographical Survey states that 40% of water was contaminated with nonprescription pharmaceuticals, and it has been reported that of the 8 of the 12 most commonly occurring chemicals in drinking water are estrogenic hormones. … “
Continue reading from the State of the Planet blog by clicking here.
California lawmakers must ensure clean H2O, says the Fresno Bee
Posted by: Maven on October 5, 2011 at 8:19 amFrom the Fresno Bee:
“The Fresno Bee’s three-part series on the San Joaquin Valley drinking water crisis has revealed an embarrassing secret about our region — our poorest residents might as well be drinking water in a third-world country.
In many rural Valley communities, the tap water is tainted by rotting vegetation, fertilizers, manure and outdated plumbing, according to the investigation by reporter Mark Grossi. It’s so bad that the United Nations visited the area and declared that residents in our region have a basic human right to clean drinking water. What does it say when the U.N. must remind us that cleaning drinking water isn’t a frill?
This crisis exists in the Golden State in the 21st century. It is outrageous that we treat the poorest among us this way. … “
Continue reading this editorial from the Fresno Bee by clicking here.
Solutions to tap-water crisis frustratingly tough to come by
Posted by: Maven on October 4, 2011 at 7:16 amFrom the Fresno Bee:
“Don’t expect a rush to clean up the tap-water mess in the San Joaquin Valley, say those closest to the problems. The issues are being studied, litigated and, according to many small-town residents, avoided.
It might take more than a decade of unsnarling red tape before rural residents can stop lugging home five-gallon bottles of drinking water, says the nonprofit watchdog Community Water Center in Visalia.
That just doesn’t work, say folks in small towns. So what would? … “
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