Massachusetts Perchlorate

[Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@cpeo.org>]

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Chemical's traces spur concern at 7 Mass. sites

Perchlorate found in water sources

By Stephanie Ebbert
Boston Globe Staff
August 24, 2004

TEWKSBURY -- At the Tewksbury Victory Garden where she tends tomatoes,
cantaloupe, and cucumbers, Kim Viens points to a frustrating irony. She
goes to great lengths to grow her produce without pesticides, but when
she cans pickles, she no longer feels comfortable using her tap water. 

"I'm concerned enough that I've been buying bottled water for my kids,"
she said of sons Alex, 8, and Matthew, 7. "Even when they brush their
teeth, I'm telling them to use bottled water."

Tests of Tewksbury water this month have found traces of perchlorate, a
chemical used in rocket fuel and missiles and more commonly detected
near contaminated military bases. No one knows where the chemical came
from or why other towns that draw their water from the Merrimack River
aren't affected. But Tewksbury is not alone in facing this uncertain
threat. This year, after the state Department of Environmental
Protection began requiring water suppliers to test for perchlorate, the
substance turned up in drinking water in six other Massachusetts
locations as well.

Perchlorate has recently emerged as a focus of debate among
environmentalists, regulators, and the US Department of Defense. As more
sensitive tests begin to detect the chemical in more places, regulators
in Massachusetts and elsewhere are trying to decide what levels of
perchlorate in the water can be considered safe.

...

for the entire article, see
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2004/08/24/chemicals_traces_spur_concern_at_7_mass_sites/

-- 


Lenny Siegel
Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
c/o PSC, 278-A Hope St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/961-8918
<lsiegel@cpeo.org>
http://www.cpeo.org

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