Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Radium, combined (-226 and -228)

Town of Ridgecrest Water Supply

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.

 

64

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

20

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.14 pCi/L193ND - 0.89 pCi/L
20190.08 pCi/L153ND - 0.38 pCi/L
20200.28 pCi/L188ND - 0.73 pCi/L
20210.30 pCi/L126ND - 1.03 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
2018-05-082020310-EAST & MAPLE ST. WELLND
2018-05-082020512-TREATED: LEE STREET PUND
2018-05-08202063-359 ELIOT ST.0.89 pCi/L
2018-05-08202063-STATION 6ND
2018-05-08353911650010.89 pCi/L
2018-05-0835391165002ND
2018-05-0835391165002ND
2018-05-08353911650010.89 pCi/L
2018-08-0135408218001ND
2018-08-01202023-BOOSTER STATION 181 HIGND
2018-08-012020526-RAW: REPLACEMENT WELLND
2018-08-01202061-REDEMPTION ROCK TRAIL WND
2018-08-0135408218001ND
2018-08-0135408218001ND
2018-08-0135408218001ND
2018-11-1535432255002ND
2018-11-152020414-PATTERSON RD WTP (TREAND
2018-11-152020129-SPRING STREET WELLND
2018-11-1535432255002ND
2019-02-1335449376001ND
2019-02-132020630-RAW WATER: CHAUNCY WELND
2019-02-13202056-THE PACKET - 354 ELM STND
2019-02-1335449376001ND
2019-05-08354678760010.38 pCi/L
2019-05-08202012-SAM BROOKS HOME0.38 pCi/L
2019-05-08354678760010.38 pCi/L
2019-08-1535491142001ND
2019-08-152020225-EVERETT ST BOOSTER STAND
2019-08-152020417-FINISHED: WELL #6 - FRND
2019-08-1535491142001ND
2019-11-132020619-FINISHED: WELL #5ND
2019-11-132020519-WELL #2: RAW WATERND
2019-11-1335512394001ND
2019-11-1335512394001ND
2020-02-122021416-WHITE LODGE WTP (6G,7GND
2020-02-1235530820001ND
2020-02-122021416-AVON RES. FINISHEDND
2020-04-02202169-WASHINGTON ST WELL 3BND
2020-04-02202154-POINT OF ENTRY0.61 pCi/L
2020-04-02355413310010.61 pCi/L
2020-04-14202146-GP WELL # 60.54 pCi/L
2020-04-142021511-119 COTTAGE STREET - 2ND
2020-04-14355441620010.65 pCi/L
2020-04-14355441620020.54 pCi/L
2020-04-142021616-RAW WATER: SHABOKIN REND
2020-04-14202168-OLD LOC. NO. - TYNGSBOR0.65 pCi/L
2020-07-012021512-WELL #4 GREAT ROAD WTPND
2020-07-012021510-TREATMENT PLANT - FINI0.73 pCi/L
2020-07-01355603120010.73 pCi/L
2020-11-0535590226001ND
2020-11-052021511-RAW: CHESTNUT ST WELLND
2020-11-052021513-864 STAFFORD ROADND
2021-03-1120211020-LAKE SHORE DR. WELLND
2021-03-1120211221-HARRIS POND GP WELL (1.03 pCi/L
2021-03-11356199930011.03 pCi/L
2021-05-1320211020-ROCK VILLAGE GP WELLND
2021-05-1320211123-ABINGTON ROCKLAND JOIND
2021-05-1335635175001ND
2021-08-03356551150010.34 pCi/L
2021-08-0320211012-POINT OF ENTRY POST T0.34 pCi/L
2021-08-0320211115-FRAMINGHAM - 1055 WORND
2021-11-05356782270010.45 pCi/L
2021-11-0520211110-DISTRICT G FINISHED WND
2021-11-0520211129-WELL #3 & WELL #6 (020.45 pCi/L