Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Radium, combined (-226 and -228)

Town of Ferriday Water System

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 – 0.05 picocuries per liter of radium-226 and 0.019 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.

 

114

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

59

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.64 pCi/L2313ND - 1.70 pCi/L
20190.80 pCi/L3220ND - 2.26 pCi/L
20200.41 pCi/L126ND - 1.15 pCi/L
20210.11 pCi/L122ND - 0.67 pCi/L
20220.65 pCi/L2312ND - 2.79 pCi/L
20230.40 pCi/L126ND - 1.06 pCi/L

pCi/L = picocuries per liter

State, National, and Health Guidelines for Drinking Water

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

All test results

Date Lab ID Result
2018-04-050.71 pCi/L
2018-04-052020519-RAW WATER: WELL #71.42 pCi/L
2018-04-052020520-NELSON PL SCHOOL - 35ND
2018-05-08353911670010.79 pCi/L
2018-05-0835391167002ND
2018-05-08353911670010.79 pCi/L
2018-05-0835391167002ND
2018-05-082020211-WELL 1 SOURCE WATER SAND
2018-05-082020513-CAPE CODDER RESORT - 1ND
2018-05-082020519-RAW WATER: STATION #1,0.79 pCi/L
2018-05-082020624-FINISHED: OTIS STREETND
2018-08-01354082200011.70 pCi/L
2018-08-01354082200011.70 pCi/L
2018-08-01354082200011.70 pCi/L
2018-08-01354082200011.70 pCi/L
2018-08-012020415-FINISHED ENTRY POINT:0.98 pCi/L
2018-08-012020519-RAW WATER: WELL #70.73 pCi/L
2018-08-01202061-1057 NORTH WESTFIELD ST0.98 pCi/L
2018-08-01202061-SEEKONK WATER TREATMENT0.73 pCi/L
2018-11-2035432698002ND
2018-11-2035432698002ND
2018-11-202020312-BRUCE CAHOON WTPND
2018-11-202020529-FIRE DEPT HEADQUARTERSND
2019-02-13354493730010.72 pCi/L
2019-02-13354493730010.72 pCi/L
2019-02-13202041-RAW WATER: WELL #5ND
2019-02-132020414-POINT OF ENTRY POST TR0.72 pCi/L
2019-05-1735470883002ND
2019-05-1735470883002ND
2019-05-17202057-JOB LANE SCHOOLND
2019-05-172020616-SPECTACLE POND WTP (TRND
2019-08-15354911380011.46 pCi/L
2019-08-15354911380021.27 pCi/L
2019-08-15354911380032.26 pCi/L
2019-08-15354911380042.13 pCi/L
2019-08-15354911410010.72 pCi/L
2019-08-15354911380011.46 pCi/L
2019-08-15354911380021.27 pCi/L
2019-08-15354911380032.26 pCi/L
2019-08-15354911380042.13 pCi/L
2019-08-15354911410010.72 pCi/L
2019-08-15202018-855 BEDFORD STREET - WOND
2019-08-152020218-70 WYNDHURST DR - 3RD1.12 pCi/L
2019-08-15202023-TWIN CITY ANIMAL HOSP-81.46 pCi/L
2019-08-152020312-MARTHA'S WAYND
2019-08-152020519-FILTRATION PLANT 6-7-90.72 pCi/L
2019-08-152020519-WELL#1ND
2019-08-15202054-150 COMMONWEALTH RD (MI1.14 pCi/L
2019-08-15202054-WELL #3 PUMPHOUSE (AFTE0.78 pCi/L
2019-08-15202057-JOB LANE SCHOOL1.27 pCi/L
2019-08-15202069-WELL #3: RAW WATER1.36 pCi/L
2019-12-1135518404001ND
2019-12-1135518404001ND
2019-12-112020212-SO. RIVER ST. WELLND
2019-12-112020624-FINISHED: PIERCE SPRINND
2020-02-12355308220010.19 pCi/L
2020-02-122021628-WELL #1 AND WELL#20.19 pCi/L
2020-02-12202167-NUTTING RD WTP-FINISHEDND
2020-04-02355413300011.10 pCi/L
2020-04-02202154-RAW: WOODBURY WELL #2ND
2020-04-022021615-WELL #91.10 pCi/L
2020-07-0135560313001ND
2020-07-012021413-BROCKTON RES. RAWND
2020-07-01202155-COHASSET WTP - FINND
2020-11-05355902150011.15 pCi/L
2020-11-052021518-HANOVER ST. WELL 1ND
2020-11-052021623-RAW WATER: WELL #2 JER1.15 pCi/L
2021-03-1135619992001ND
2021-03-112021122-CENTER STREET FIRE STAND
2021-03-112021126-117 NEWBURY STREETND
2021-05-1335635178001ND
2021-05-1320211021-FURNACE BROOK #3ND
2021-05-132021119-PLAIN ST FILTRATION PLND
2021-08-03356551110010.67 pCi/L
2021-08-0320211026-WELL # 1ND
2021-08-032021126-WELLS #2 & #30.67 pCi/L
2021-11-1535678228001ND
2021-11-1520211014-STATION # 1 (01G)-ENDND
2021-11-1520211119-FINISHED: WOODBURY GPND
2022-02-09356967560010.81 pCi/L
2022-02-09202296-WEST PEABODY WTP - (2S,ND
2022-02-09202297-FINISHED: FRUIT ST PUMP0.81 pCi/L
2022-06-01357221740020.76 pCi/L
2022-06-012022914-JACQUES WTF- LEAD (MIDND
2022-06-01202298-BOSTON ST. WTP - FINISH0.76 pCi/L
2022-06-2035727003001ND
2022-06-20357270030021.30 pCi/L
2022-06-20357270030031.78 pCi/L
2022-06-20357270030042.79 pCi/L
2022-06-202022711-WELL 1 SOURCE SAMPLE (ND
2022-06-202022725-ELM ST. WATER TREATMEN1.60 pCi/L
2022-06-202022725-RAW WATER: WELL #5 & 51.30 pCi/L
2022-06-202022817-OWEN WTP1.19 pCi/L
2022-06-202022819-WELLESLEY AVE. WTPND
2022-06-20202283-BOTANY WELL #21.16 pCi/L
2022-06-202022927-WELL #9 EAST CENTRAL SND
2022-06-20202298-GRAVELLY POND W.T.P.0.62 pCi/L
2022-08-1535741189001ND
2022-08-15202291-BROWNS XING REPL.WF - RND
2022-08-152022913-POINT OF ENTRYND
2022-11-0935760466001ND
2022-11-09202288-HOME FARM WTP: FINISHEDND
2023-02-22357830970010.64 pCi/L
2023-02-222023424-REGIONAL FILTRATION PL0.64 pCi/L
2023-02-22202344-WELL #9 EAST CENTRAL STND
2023-04-13357926490010.68 pCi/L
2023-04-132023425-HENDRICK WELLFIELD RAWND
2023-04-132023619-WELL 1: SOURCE WATER0.68 pCi/L
2023-07-2735817955001ND
2023-07-272023410-FILTRATION PLANT 6-7-9ND
2023-07-27202358-RAW WATER: WELL #6 WESTND
2023-10-24358376290011.06 pCi/L
2023-10-24202347-WELL A2 - RAW WATER1.06 pCi/L
2023-10-24202365-GP WELL # 4ND