April 30, 2007—The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has made a preliminary determination not to regulate 11 contaminants on the second drinking water contaminant candidate list (CCL). The agency’s “preliminary regulatory determination,” based on an extensive review of health effects and occurrence data, concludes that the specific contaminants do not occur at levels of public health concern in public water systems.
Two other contaminants—perchlorate and MTBE—require additional investigation to ascertain total human exposure and health risks. For those contaminants, EPA is providing a summary of current health, occurrence, and exposure information.
The 11 contaminants include naturally occurring substances, pesticides, herbicides, and chemicals used (or once used) in manufacturing. EPA monitored eight of the contaminants during the first round of the unregulated contaminant monitoring program and the remaining three during previous occurrence surveys.
While none of the contaminants were found nationally at levels of public health concern, EPA is recommending that health advisories for seven of the contaminants be updated to provide local officials with current health information for situations where the contaminants may occur.
The agency is seeking comments and additional information for 60 days following publication of a notice in the Federal Register. For more information, visit EPA’s Drinking Water Contaminant Candidate List Web page.
