The Environmental Working Group (EWG) has release a report that found hexavalent chromium in almost 90% of US drinking water. The report found that 219 million Americans’ drinking water succeeded the public health goal of .02 parts per billion set by the California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment and that the drinking water of 7 million Americans exceeded California’s legal limit.
The report was shared by several media outlets such as CNN, PBS, Mother Jones and several local newspapers.
Hexavalent chromium, or as it is commonly know as chromium-6, is the chemical compound made famous by the movie Erin Brockovich. The movie, which stars Julie Roberts, focuses on the real life story of the lawyer Erin Brockovich, now Erin Brockovich-Ellis, and her law suit against company Pacific, Gas & Electric (PG&C). Brockovich-Ellis accused the company’s leaching of hexavalent chromium into the drinking water of Hinkley, California of causing increase number of cancer and other negative health problems.
While this may seem cause for concern it is important to put this report into perspective. The EWG is an environmental NGO that isn’t known for following science. Its famous “Dirty Dozen” list of foods containing pesticides has been widely discredited for failing to recognize that the pesticides in question fall far below the USDA accepted standard. Likewise Brockovich-Ellis also has been criticized for her claims about hexavalent chromium and its effects on the health of the residents of Hinkley.
Inhaled hexavalent chromium is a known carcinogen. This is why OSHA set an exposure limit for those who work with it. Whether you can receive cancer from drinking is a little bit complicated. Hexavalent chromium can turn into trivalent chromium in certain conditions. Trivalent chromium is an essential nutrient.
Recently, a study conducted by the National Toxicity Program did show that mice and rats contracted malignant tumors in their small intestines and mouths when they drank water containing several different doses of hexavalent chromium. It is the results of this study that California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment set the public health goal of .02 parts per billions. But is should be noted that the rats in the studies were fed high doses of hexavalent chromium that might not be relevant to humans. The EPA currently sets the Maximum Containment Level for all forms of chromium at 100 ppb. It is currently reviewing chromium.