EWG Investigation | U.S. Tap Water Quality Database

Health Limit Exceeded
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Legal Limit
• EPA set legal limit which balances health concerns and treatment costs

Tier 3 Control - past mining and drilling
• Closed or abandoned mines/plans/notices
• Mineral rich land that has been titled to mining interests (mining patents)
• Formerly drilled and pumped oil & gas Leases

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EWG Statement, 03/10/2008

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NATIONAL SUMMARY

Quality Varies Across the U.S.

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Tap Water Quality Report
The State of Maine
396 Water Systems
Serving 615,886 People

An Environmental Working Group analysis of tap water tests from 1998 through 2003 for 396 communities across Maine shows 74 pollutants were found in drinking water across the state.

Pollution Summary

74	Total Contaminants Detected (1998 - 2003)
15	Agricultural Pollutants (pesticides, fertilizer, factory farms) Nitrate & nitrite, Nitrate, Nitrite, Sulfate, Thallium (total), Toxaphene, Methomyl, Oxamyl (Vydate), Aldicarb sulfoxide, Aldicarb sulfone, Carbofuran, Aldicarb, 3-Hydroxycarbofuran, Metribuzin, Ethylbenzene
17	Sprawl and Urban Pollutants (road runoff, lawn pesticides, human waste) Arsenic (total), Cadmium (total), Copper, Lead (total), Mercury (total inorganic), Nitrate & nitrite, Nitrate, Nitrite, Antimony (total), Naphthalene, MTBE, Dimethylphthalate, Diethylphthalate, Di-n-butylphthalate, Butyl Benzylphthalate, Xylenes (total), Tetrachloroethylene
50	Industrial Pollutants Aluminum, Arsenic (total), Barium (total), Cadmium (total), Chromium (total), Cyanide, Lead (total), Manganese, Mercury (total inorganic), Nitrate & nitrite, Nitrate, Nitrite, Selenium (total), Silver (total), Sulfate, Antimony (total), Beryllium (total), Thallium (total), Di(2-Ethylhexyl) adipate, Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, Hexachlorocyclopentadiene, Chloromethane, Dichlorodifluoromethane, Naphthalene, MTBE, Dimethylphthalate, Diethylphthalate, Di-n-butylphthalate, Butyl Benzylphthalate, 1,2,4-Trimethylbenzene, 1,3,5-Trimethylbenzene, Xylenes (total), Dichloromethane (methylene chloride), p-Dichlorobenzene, 1,1-Dichloroethane, 1,1,1-Trichloroethane, Carbon tetrachloride, Trichloroethylene, Tetrachloroethylene, Toluene, Ethylbenzene, Alpha particle activity (excl radon and uranium), Combined Uranium (mg/L), Uranium-234, Uranium-238, Combined Radium (-226 & -228), Radium-226, Radium-228, Alpha particle activity, Combined Uranium (pCi/L)
16	Water Treatment and Distribution Byproducts (pipes and fixtures, treatment chemicals and byproducts) Cadmium (total), Orthophosphate, Asbestos, Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, Chloromethane, Monochloroacetic acid, Dichloroacetic acid, Trichloroacetic acid, Monobromoacetic acid, Dibromoacetic acid, Total haloacetic acids, Chloroform, Bromoform, Bromodichloromethane, Dibromochloromethane, Total trihalomethanes (TTHMs)
24	Naturally Occurring (naturally present but increased for lands denuded by sprawl, agriculture, or industrial development) Aluminum, Arsenic (total), Chromium (total), Copper, Lead (total), Manganese, Mercury (total inorganic), Nitrate & nitrite, Nitrate, Nitrite, Selenium (total), Silver (total), Sulfate, Chloromethane, Alpha particle activity (excl radon and uranium), Radon, Combined Uranium (mg/L), Uranium-234, Uranium-238, Combined Radium (-226 & -228), Radium-226, Radium-228, Alpha particle activity, Combined Uranium (pCi/L)
19	Unregulated Contaminants EPA has not established a maximum legal limit in tapwater for these contaminants Orthophosphate, Methomyl, Aldicarb sulfoxide, Aldicarb sulfone, Aldicarb, 3-Hydroxycarbofuran, Chloromethane, Dichlorodifluoromethane, Naphthalene, MTBE, Dimethylphthalate, Diethylphthalate, Di-n-butylphthalate, Butyl Benzylphthalate, 1,2,4-Trimethylbenzene, 1,3,5-Trimethylbenzene, Metribuzin, 1,1-Dichloroethane, Radon

74 36
15 5
17 9
50 24
16 10
24 16
Total pollutants Agricultural pollutants Sprawl and Urban pollutants Industrial pollutants Water Treatment and Distribution Byproducts Naturally occurring pollutants
Number of pollutants detected (1998 - 2003) Over health based limits

NOTE: Health based limits included in this analysis include enforceable drinking water limits (called Maximum Contaminant Limits, or MCLs) as well as governmental, non-enforceable health guidelines, such as Maximum Contaminant Limit Goals (MCLGs), lifetime health advisory levels, one-day and ten-day advisory levels to protect children from non-cancer health endpoints, and other government-established health guidelines for tap water contaminants.

Health Summary

The federal government has set standards for 80 chemical pollutants in tap water, balancing health concerns and treatment costs.

Contaminants found in state tap water (1998-2003): 74

Total population exposed above health-based limits: 464,125

Communities served water with contaminants above health-based limits: 303

Health effects or target organs of contaminants found: Cardiovascular or Blood Toxicity, Cancer, Developmental Toxicity, Endocrine Toxicity, Immunotoxicity, Kidney Toxicity, Gastrointestinal or Liver Toxicity, Neurotoxicity, Reproductive Toxicity, Respiratory Toxicity, and Skin Sensitivity.

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Contaminants found above health based limits: 36

Rank Contaminant Name Population Exposed (of 615,886 Total) Number of Water Systems (of 396) Total
At Any Level Above Health Limits
See Note With Detected Above Health Limits
See Note
1 Copper 550,093 25,789 333 36
contaminant that enters water by corrosion of household plumbing systems; erosion of natural deposits
2 Barium (total) 584,052 1,868 327 1
Mineral from drilling and mining waste runoff; erosion of natrual deposits
3 Alpha particle activity (excl radon and uranium) 548,823 3,759 315 23
From mining waste pollutants and natural sources
4 Manganese 558,085 46,222 276 50
element from natural deposits as well as industrial use
5 Nitrate 270,913 241 251 2
Chemical that enters water from fertilizer runoff, leaching septic tanks, and erosion of natural deposits
6 Nitrate & nitrite 286,465 51 230 1
Chemical that enters water from fertilizer runoff, leaching septic tanks, and erosion of natural deposits
7 Arsenic (total) 274,537 274,537 188 188
Metal that enters water by erosion of natural deposits, runoff from glass and electronics processing
8 Lead (total) 233,452 49,846 145 33
Metal that enters water by corrosion of household plumbing systems; industrial pollutant; erosion of natural deposits
9 Radon 170,516 151,296 142 129
natural (radioactive) breakdown product of uranium in soil, rock and water
10 Total trihalomethanes (TTHMs) 486,543 325,152 103 57
Measure of four disinfection by-products

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Testing Summary

The federal government has set standards for some of the pollutants found in tap water supplies.

Contaminants reported as tested by water suppliers in Maine 172

Contaminants tested due to federal law: 94

Contaminants tested in addition to those required by federal law: 78

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Violations Summary

According to EPA, in 2003 6% of America's public water systems reported one or more violations of a health-based drinking water standard, and 26% reported significant violations of either monitoring and reporting requirements or health-based standards.

Reported violations (1998 - 2003): 1,368

Number of ME systems with violations: 270 (68.2%)

[View Details]

Information on violations is drawn directly from EPA's national violations database in the Agency's Safe Drinking Water Information System. Analyses by others have raised questions about the quality of the information in EPA's database. For the purposes of this investigation, EWG is not showing below or including in our analyses, those violations for individual water suppliers that occurred on days for which the total number of violations assigned by EPA to that water supplier was greater than 20. This criteria was based on common characteristics of incorrect violations data as identified by water utilities, from a review of EPA's violations data by several hundred utilities prior to the release of EWG's investigation.