EPA ignores National Academy of Sciences on tap water contaminants
April 09, 2004: The Environmental Protection Agency has ignored the recommendations of the National Academy of Sciences in deciding simply to ratify a list of 51 drinking water contaminants it developed in 1998 in compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act. Three NAS reports on drinking water contaminants (two issued in 1999, and one in 2001) recommended, among other things, that the EPA use the latest gene-mapping technology to screen for a much larger list of contaminants, including waterborne pathogens, chemical agents, disinfection byproducts, radioactive substances and biological compounds. Instead, the EPA proposed in an early April 2004 Federal Register notice to postpone the use of the NAS recommendations until it issues a subsequent list of contaminants -- likely around 2009. NRDC and other health and environmental groups have strongly urged the agency to adopt new standards swiftly to protect against numerous contaminants that have been shown to be detrimental to human health.
"There's more than enough scientific information right now to justify safeguarding the public from toxic contaminants in drinking water, but the Bush administration continues to stall," said Erik Olson, an attorney in NRDC's health program.
© 2012 Natural Resources Defense Council
