High levels of hexavalent chromium, a toxic heavy metal, add to the hurdles Cadiz Inc. faces in its plan to ship water to the Southland.
By Bettina Boxall, Los Angeles Times
July 21, 2012
The Mojave Desert groundwater thatCadiz Inc.wants to sell to Southland suburbs contains hexavalent chromium, a carcinogen, in amounts that are hundreds of times greater than the state’s public health goal for drinking water.
The presence of the toxic heavy metal, which occurs naturally in the aquifer Cadiz proposes to tap, could force the company to undertake expensive treatment, driving up the cost of the project and ultimately the price of its water.
The chromium contamination is one of several concerns raised by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, which owns and operates the 242-mile-long Colorado River Aqueduct that Cadiz would use to transport its supplies to customers.
Metropolitan has also informed Cadiz that the aqueduct space the company is counting on may not always be available, especially during dry years when demand for the Cadiz water would likely be the greatest.
The issues, described in environmental documents released last week, add to the hurdles Cadiz faces as it pursues a project that would push the boundaries of California’s nascent private water market.
They also underscore that though the company is promoting its water as an alternative to imported supplies threatened by drought and environmental restrictions, its groundwater would also be imported 200 miles from the eastern Mojave to coastal customers and could be subject to delivery limits.
“Our aqueduct is probably the most valuable possession we have. So we’re going to be extremely careful,” said Jeffrey Kightlinger, general manager of Metropolitan, which built the aqueduct and has for decades used it to convey Colorado River supplies to millions of Southern Californians.
Metropolitan and Cadiz have a complicated history. More than a decade ago they planned a major water storage and pumping project in the Mojave that the Metropolitan board voted down in 2002, killing the proposal. Cadiz subsequently sued the agency, waging a costly legal battle that ended when it dropped the lawsuit shortly before a scheduled trial.
Now Cadiz needs Metropolitan’s approval for use of the aqueduct, which is key to its latest proposal to withdraw and sell enough groundwater from beneath its Mojave holdings near Amboy to supply 100,000 homes each year. The sales could reap $1 billion to $2 billion in revenue for Cadiz over the life of the project.
The proposal has drawn opposition from U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), a powerful Mojave advocate, conservation groups and desert residents who fear the pumping will harm the environment of surrounding public lands, including the Mojave National Preserve.
An international company that operates industrial salt works at neighboring dry lakes has filed two lawsuits to block the project and environmental groups are expected to file more legal challenges.
There are currently no federal or state standards for hexavalent chromium, also known as chromium 6, in drinking water. But the state, citing international research that drinking water exposure has been linked to an increase in stomach tumors and liver cancer deaths, last year set a public health goal that will be used in the development of a regulatory standard.
At 14 parts per billion to 16 parts per billion, the chromium 6 levels in the Cadiz water far exceed the public health goal of .02 parts per billion. The ultimate state standard, expected in two to three years, will undoubtedly be higher than the health goal. But even if Cadiz supplies meet the new standard, Metropolitan could still require treatment before the groundwater is pumped into the aqueduct.
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The American Chemistry Council, which represents the chemical industry, says the California goal is unrealistic because some water supplies have naturally occurring hexavalent chromium that is higher than .06 parts per billion.
This article describes a WOE analysis to examine the likelihood that Cr(VI) in drinking water poses a cancer hazard at the current U.S. drinking-water standard. The results indicate that: (1) From the historical epidemiological studies, there are a few reports of increased rates of digestive system cancer among Cr(VI)-exposed workers, although most are not statistically significant; (2) the preponderance of evidence from recent epidemiological studies of Cr(VI)-exposed workers does not support an increased risk of cancer outside of the respiratory system; (3) studies of four environmentally exposed populations are negative; (4) there is only one lifetime animal feeding study, and the findings from that study are considered to be flawed and inconclusive; and (5) recent kinetics and in vivo genotoxicity data demonstrate that Cr(VI) is reduced to nontoxic Cr(III) in saliva, in the acidic conditions of the stomach, and in blood. In short, at concentrations at least as high as the current U.S. maximum contaminant level (100 ppb), and probably at least an order of magnitude higher, Cr(VI) is reduced to Cr(III) prior to or upon systemic absorption. The weight of scientific evidence supports that Cr(VI) is not carcinogenic in humans via the oral route of exposure at permissible drinking-water concentrations.
I say we should let the colonies partners, the BOS, and all inland mayors and council members drink first.
#2 very funny!
Except that the water doesn’t cause any problems. It is only an issue if you breath it. read the research.