Critics demand cleaner water

Federal study shows presence of perchlorate can affect pregnancies

Daily News, Alex Dobuzinskis
Published October 30, 2006

SANTA CLARITA - After a federal study showing women can be harmed by perchlorate in drinking water, environmentalists are calling on the state to adopt a stricter standard than the one it's considering. But in Santa Clarita, officials with the Castaic Lake Water Agency said Monday that they are already committed to eliminating perchlorate in drinking water to undetectable levels. Before the end of the year, the agency is expected to approve a $10 million project to pump and treat water from two wells polluted by the nearby Whittaker-Bermite site. The state's health goal is to keep perchlorate levels in drinking water to 6 parts per billion or less. Dan Masnada, general manager of the CLWA, said his agency can beat that. "Once you're treating it to 6 parts per billion, (going to) nondetectable (levels is) not costing you that much more," he said. The Environmental Working Group has seized on a U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study released earlier this month to call on the state to have stricter standards than 6 ppb. "It absolutely would fail to protect the health of women and children in California," said Renee Sharp, senior analyst with the group, which is Advertisement based in Washington, D.C. The CDC study found that perchlorate exposure can cause reduced thyroid function in women, particularly the roughly one-third of American women with low iodine intake. Studies show that thyroid problems in pregnant women can cause abnormal brain development in fetuses, as well as leave women suffering from fatigue and other symptoms. About 10 percent of women with low iodine intake could require treatment if pregnant and if they were exposed to as little as 5 ppb of perchlorate, according to the Environmental Working Group. On Monday, the state Department of Health Services held a hearing on its proposed adoption of 6 parts per billion as a standard, rather than a health goal. Environmental groups argued that the standard should be lower. Perchlorate is a component in rocket fuel. It has been found at certain locations on the Whittaker-Bermite site, a former center for munitions manufacturing, at counts of tens of thousands of parts per billion. The company is paying for cleanup of the site. If the state adopts 6 ppb as a standard, it could go into effect next year.