Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Dichloromethane (methylene chloride)

Camden Wyoming Sewer and Water Authority

Methylene chloride is a common industrial solvent used for paint stripping, vapor degreasing, printing, electronics manufacturing and cleaning. It causes cancer and liver damage in animal studies. Read More.

Surface and groundwater can be contaminated with methylene chloride from industrial releases and landfill leaching. The EPA considers methylene chloride likely carcinogenic to people. Long-term ingestion of drinking water with methylene chloride contamination can cause liver damage and cancer. Occupational exposure to methylene chloride and other solvents has been linked with increased risk of miscarriage. Birth defects have also been observed in studies of laboratory animals exposed to methylene chloride during pregnancy.

Click here to read more about carcinogenic VOCs.

 

14

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

0

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
2018ND20ND
2019ND20ND
2020ND30ND
2021ND10ND
2022ND20ND
2023ND40ND

ppb = parts per billion

State, National, and Health Guidelines for Drinking Water

EWG Health Guideline: 4 ppb

The EWG Health Guideline of 4 ppb for dichloromethane (methylene chloride) was defined by the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment as a public health goal, the level of a drinking water contaminant that does not pose a significant health risk. This health guideline protects against cancer.

EPA Maximum Contaminant
Level (MCL): 5 ppb

The legal limit for dichloromethane, established in 1992, was based on analytical detection limits at the time that the standard was set.

ppb = parts per billion

All test results

Date Lab ID Result
2018-03-23S792284ND
2018-06-22S792509ND
2019-07-25S848599ND
2019-10-29S925121ND
2020-07-16S969532ND
2020-12-07S990216ND
2020-12-07S990220ND
2021-12-09S1159216ND
2022-09-09S1216925ND
2022-11-18S1243001ND
2023-09-05S1287716ND
2023-11-09S1313281ND
2023-11-09S1313284ND
2023-11-09S1313288ND