Radium, combined (-226 & -228)

Status: National drinking water standard exists

Radium is a radioactive element that causes bone cancer and other cancers. It can occur naturally in groundwater, and oil and gas extraction activities such as hydraulic fracturing can elevate concentrations. Read More.

Radium releases radioactive particles that harm health in many ways, causing tumors in bone, lungs and other organs; leukemia; and skin and blood damage. Water utilities typically report radium amounts in picocuries per liter (pCi/L), which is a measure of radioactivity in water. The two most common forms of radium are radium-226 and radium-228. They may be reported separately or together.

Federal law allows up to 5 picocuries per liter of combined radium-226 and radium-228 in tap water. Research by the U.S. Geological Survey shows that in some regions of the country, such as the mid-continental region and North Atlantic coastal region, more than 20 percent of sampled wells have radium in levels exceeding the federal drinking water limit. And the legal limit does not equate safety: The EPA estimates that one in every 10,000 people drinking water containing radium at this level would develop cancer over a lifetime.

California set a public health goal much lower than the federal limit - 0.019 picocuries per liter of radium-226 and 0.05 picocuries per liter of radium-228, concentrations that are lower than the detection limit for most water tests.

Click here to read more on radiological contaminants.

2012-2017:

FOUND

FOUND ABOVE HEALTH GUIDELINES

FOUND ABOVE LEGAL LIMIT

states detected

23,998

utilities detected

153 million

people served

states over health guideline

23,976

utilities over health guideline

150 million

people served over health guideline

states over legal limit

192

utilities over legal limit

436,000

people served over legal limit

Health concerns for radium, combined (-226 & -228)

Cancer

State and national drinking water standards and health guidelines

EWG Health Guideline 0.05 pCi/L

EWG applied the health guideline of 0.05 pCi/L, defined by the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment as a public health goal for radium-226, to radium-226 and radium-228 combined. This health guideline protects against cancer.

EPA Maximum Contaminant
Level (MCL) 5 pCi/L

The legal limit for combined radium-226 and radium-228, established in 1976, was based on costs for radium removal, as calculated at the time that the standard was set. This limit does not fully protect against the risk of cancer due to radium exposure.

pCi/L = picocuries per liter

States reporting radium, combined (-226 & -228) in drinking water

	UTILITIES REPORTING ABOVE HEALTH GUIDELINES			UTILITIES WITH CONTAMINATION
State	Utilities	People Served		Utilities	People Served
Texas		3,334	18,272,162			3,274	18,246,886
Florida		842	14,107,477			842	14,107,477
California		437	11,199,601			467	12,426,440
Illinois		1,454	11,504,893			1,319	9,628,413
New York		1,104	8,411,517			1,112	8,404,443
Massachusetts		448	5,908,312			449	5,908,326
Arizona		266	4,871,456			273	5,646,791
Tennessee		323	5,448,713			314	5,467,285
Michigan		753	4,790,740			757	4,785,598
Colorado		436	4,007,342			438	4,008,610
Virginia		644	3,957,662			646	3,974,270
Georgia		598	3,963,920			597	3,963,015
Wisconsin		947	3,842,129			950	3,842,964
Louisiana		535	3,231,669			533	3,488,742
Kentucky		273	3,279,590			270	3,276,132
Pennsylvania		732	3,228,776			732	3,229,809
Alabama		189	3,018,286			192	3,187,475
Utah		368	2,950,981			372	2,951,832
Maryland		142	2,942,809			143	2,951,249
Ohio		367	2,517,330			371	2,585,713
Indiana		215	2,267,962			213	2,254,930
Nevada		127	865,183			131	2,216,606
North Carolina		708	2,163,262			710	2,195,724
Minnesota		431	2,174,931			431	2,174,931
New Jersey		176	1,868,208			176	1,868,208
New Mexico		443	1,725,452			528	1,819,801
Oklahoma		550	1,688,396			552	1,697,390
Nebraska		489	1,526,585			488	1,529,585
Washington		642	1,309,832			664	1,457,596
Missouri		431	1,053,564			442	1,386,265
Idaho		460	1,109,254			479	1,135,454
Oregon		201	1,029,680			201	1,029,680
West Virginia		294	1,020,300			285	1,022,019
Kansas		530	1,022,446			523	1,016,572
Iowa		557	995,779			548	991,378
Delaware		188	942,122			197	947,404
New Hampshire		547	790,840			549	793,533
Arkansas		322	750,765			330	769,862
South Carolina		153	563,591			155	669,668
Alaska		296	615,598			323	643,581
Connecticut		144	557,725			145	560,822
Mississippi		184	484,518			208	559,557
Montana		486	409,513			492	451,109
Wyoming		273	417,904			250	408,391
North Dakota		234	391,346			224	381,653
Vermont		240	346,002			231	343,510
Maine		259	217,883			266	226,060
South Dakota		184	200,430			186	200,851
Rhode Island		20	158,839			20	158,839

LESS

Filtering technologies that reduce radium, combined (-226 & -228)

Utilities with the highest amounts of radium, combined (-226 & -228), 2012-2017

ALL UTILITIES

LARGE UTILITIES

Utility	Location	Tests	Average level	People served
Patterson Valley Water Company	Rocky Ford, CO	5 of 5	22.38 pCi/L	120
South Council Creek 2	Austin, TX	4 of 4	21.90 pCi/L	111
South Silver Creek I II & III	Austin, TX	24 of 24	19.28 pCi/L	258
City of Brady Water System*	Brady, TX	121 of 121	17.13 pCi/L	5,500
Fayette Water Company	Manzanola, CO	6 of 6	16.65 pCi/L	75
Eureka Water Company	Swink, CO	6 of 6	16.40 pCi/L	498
South Swink Water Company	La Junta, CO	12 of 12	15.08 pCi/L	600
Vroman Water Company	Manzanola, CO	7 of 7	13.57 pCi/L	125
Valley Water Company	Manzanola, CO	12 of 12	13.39 pCi/L	270
Ranch Water Service Inc.	Kingman, AZ	24 of 24	13.15 pCi/L	135
Lakeland Services	Brady, TX	23 of 23	13.15 pCi/L	53
Tanglewood Forest Subdivision	Livingston, TX	20 of 20	12.79 pCi/L	86
Live Oak Hills Subdivision	Llano, TX	24 of 24	12.79 pCi/L	70
Monterey Rural Water System Inc.	Monterey, LA	10 of 10	12.70 pCi/L	5,250
Mountain Top Ws	Indialantic, GA	9 of 9	12.49 pCi/L	121
Cws Peachtree Acres	Columbia, SC	10 of 10	12.40 pCi/L	119
Peak View Park Llc	Woodland Park, CO	3 of 3	12.07 pCi/L	70
Farmington	Farmington, MO	1 of 1	11.50 pCi/L	19,351
Gator Wilderness Camp School	Punta Gorda, FL	26 of 26	11.08 pCi/L	44
Killington Center Inn	Killington, VT	2 of 2	11.05 pCi/L	75
Champion Farms Subdivision	Troy, MO	16 of 16	10.96 pCi/L	30
Downsville Sanitary District	Downsville, WI	2 of 2	10.45 pCi/L	250
Signal Mountain Ranch Property Owners Water Company	Beulah, CO	14 of 14	10.42 pCi/L	66
Perry County Public Water Supply District 1	Perryville, MO	15 of 15	10.05 pCi/L	1,970
May Valley Wa	Wiley, CO	42 of 42	9.96 pCi/L	1,500
Lake Texoma Vfw Post 7873	Pottsboro, TX	24 of 24	9.84 pCi/L	114
Tempe Water Supply Corporation 1	Moscow, TX	46 of 48	9.82 pCi/L	1,704
Mineral Point PWS	Mineral Point, MO	17 of 17	9.78 pCi/L	359
Vista Verde Water Systems	Kirbyville, TX	24 of 24	9.22 pCi/L	111
North Holbrook Water Company	Rocky Ford, CO	6 of 6	9.13 pCi/L	75
Denali - Rock Creek Hq.	Denali Park, AK	2 of 2	9.10 pCi/L	220
Conroe Oaks	Houston, TX	24 of 24	8.90 pCi/L	90
Marshview Terrace	Waupun, WI	8 of 12	8.49 pCi/L	40
Cookson Hills Christian School	Kansas, OK	25 of 26	8.43 pCi/L	150
City of Melvin	Melvin, TX	38 of 38	8.40 pCi/L	300
Welch Public Works Authority	Welch, OK	21 of 21	8.28 pCi/L	800
Highland Court	Dallas, TX	24 of 24	8.26 pCi/L	90
Leadwood PWS	Leadwood, MO	13 of 13	8.01 pCi/L	1,300
Rosewood Hills Property Homeowners Association	Woodland Park, CO	1 of 1	8.00 pCi/L	135
Rochelle Water Supply Corporation	Rochelle, TX	24 of 24	7.90 pCi/L	372
Allouez Waterworks	Green Bay, WI	2 of 2	7.89 pCi/L	13,932
White Tail Ridge Lakes Estates	Livingston, TX	25 of 25	7.86 pCi/L	213
Fox Lawn Utilities Company Inc.	Yorkville, IL	23 of 23	7.84 pCi/L	273
Thornhill Condos	Hampton, NH	1 of 1	7.80 pCi/L	175
Cedar Gulch II	Rapid City, SD	2 of 6	7.70 pCi/L	27
Superior Water Company Cpf	Gilbertsville, PA	2 of 2	7.57 pCi/L	500
Lake Arrowhead Subdivision	Waleska, GA	9 of 12	7.55 pCi/L	3,120
Cheraw, Town of	Cheraw, CO	6 of 6	7.55 pCi/L	254
Andover	Andover, MN	32 of 34	7.51 pCi/L	19,310
Bonne Terre PWS	Bonne Terre, MO	52 of 54	7.49 pCi/L	4,000

* This water utility supplies finished drinking water to at least one other water utility. The purchasing utility is not required to test for or report Radium, combined (-226 & -228), but it likely has the contaminant in its water supply.

Utility	Location	Tests	Average level	People served
Farmington	Farmington, MO	1 of 1	11.50 pCi/L	19,351
Allouez Waterworks	Green Bay, WI	2 of 2	7.89 pCi/L	13,932
Andover	Andover, MN	32 of 34	7.51 pCi/L	19,310
Winona	Winona, MN	20 of 20	7.38 pCi/L	27,782
Bellevue Waterworks	Green Bay, WI	1 of 2	7.08 pCi/L	15,365
City of Abbeville Water System	Abbeville, LA	4 of 6	6.97 pCi/L	15,012
Franklin Water Utility	Franklin, WI	1 of 1	6.56 pCi/L	22,500
Delta Charter Township	Lansing, MI	34 of 34	6.48 pCi/L	22,000
Ashwaubenon Waterworks*	Green Bay, WI	3 of 3	6.38 pCi/L	17,730
Waukesha Water Utility	Waukesha, WI	133 of 133	5.95 pCi/L	70,718
Sussex Village Hall & Water Utility	Sussex, WI	76 of 76	5.67 pCi/L	10,573
Inver Grove Heights*	Inver Grove Heights, MN	12 of 12	5.48 pCi/L	34,189
Fort Dodge Water Supply	Fort Dodge, IA	11 of 11	5.25 pCi/L	25,206
Faribault	Faribault, MN	4 of 4	4.65 pCi/L	23,415
Lugoff Elgin Water Authority	Lugoff, SC	1 of 1	4.60 pCi/L	19,671
Howard Waterworks	Green Bay, WI	11 of 11	4.44 pCi/L	18,900
Marion Municipal Water Department*	Marion, IA	13 of 13	4.44 pCi/L	34,610
Naval Air Station Pensacola / Corry Station	Nas Pensacola, FL	30 of 30	4.29 pCi/L	22,600
North Mankato	North Mankato, MN	22 of 22	4.26 pCi/L	13,462
Western Springs	Western Springs, IL	3 of 3	4.23 pCi/L	11,984
Kaukauna Utilities	Kaukauna, WI	21 of 23	4.22 pCi/L	13,430
Michigan State University	East Lansing, MI	74 of 74	4.11 pCi/L	13,900
Wentzville	Wentzville, MO	1 of 1	4.10 pCi/L	31,000
Emerald Coast Utilities Authority*	Pensacola, FL	30 of 30	4.07 pCi/L	249,872
North Aurora*	North Aurora, IL	18 of 20	4.06 pCi/L	13,764
Coon Rapids	Coon Rapids, MN	18 of 18	4.03 pCi/L	61,476
Milan Water Department	Milan, TN	2 of 2	4.01 pCi/L	10,476
Anoka	Anoka, MN	12 of 12	4.01 pCi/L	17,243
Burnsville*	Burnsville, MN	4 of 4	3.95 pCi/L	61,262
City of Laurinburg*	Laurinburg, NC	2 of 2	3.90 pCi/L	17,242
Virginia-American Water Company*	Alexandria, VA	2 of 2	3.90 pCi/L	28,000
Peru	Peru, IL	8 of 8	3.90 pCi/L	11,000
Darboy Sanitary District 1	Appleton, WI	8 of 9	3.87 pCi/L	12,000
Minnetonka	Minnetonka, MN	24 of 24	3.79 pCi/L	50,747
Waupun Utilities	Waupun, WI	17 of 17	3.75 pCi/L	11,340
Epcor Water - Anthem*	Youngtown, AZ	2 of 2	3.75 pCi/L	25,302
De Pere Water Department	De Pere, WI	19 of 25	3.71 pCi/L	23,920
South Saint Paul	South St. Paul, MN	22 of 22	3.63 pCi/L	20,250
Yorkville	Yorkville, IL	37 of 37	3.57 pCi/L	11,404
Loves Park	Loves Park, IL	49 of 50	3.55 pCi/L	22,476
Freeport	Freeport, IL	13 of 13	3.54 pCi/L	26,443
Merchantville Pennsauken	Pennsauken, NJ	14 of 14	3.51 pCi/L	47,144
Gloucester City W Department	Gloucester City, NJ	1 of 1	3.50 pCi/L	12,460
Lauderdale County Water System	Ripley, TN	2 of 2	3.50 pCi/L	11,246
Sycamore	Sycamore, IL	41 of 41	3.50 pCi/L	14,000
Ottawa*	Ottawa, IL	25 of 26	3.50 pCi/L	18,307
Brookfield Water Utility	Brookfield, WI	76 of 76	3.50 pCi/L	29,070
Benton City WSC	Lytle, TX	13 of 13	3.49 pCi/L	17,292
Fayetteville*	Fayetteville, GA	1 of 1	3.48 pCi/L	15,281
Lake Cities Municipal Utility Authority	Lake Dallas, TX	1 of 1	3.35 pCi/L	15,000