In our previous post on the CA Chromium 6 proposal, we shared that CDPH has officially proposed a Maximum Contaminant Level of .01-milligrams per liter. The proposal is open for public comment, and the public is beginning to do just that.
In Riverside County, the Board of Supervisors met on Tuesday to discuss the effects and feasibility of the new MCL. The Board unanimously supported a resolution urging the state urging the state to rethink plans to further limit Chromium 6. The metal is found naturally in the Coachella Valley’s drinking water as a result of erosion of a type of serpentine rock that’s found along the San Andreas Fault. Supervisor John Benoit said: “It certainly is a noble effort to make sure we have the cleanest drinking water available. But this is a standard that is not applicable anywhere else in the nation.”
Benoit also said the California Department of Public Health should undertake a more thorough cost-benefit analysis before moving toward implementation. State health officials have estimated the average ratepayer would only see a $64 spike in water costs — a figure that “severely underestimates the cost impacts to Coachella Valley” residents. And Riverside County is not the only county that would face rate increases if the proposed MCL becomes mandatory. For more information, you can read about the Riverside County Board of Supervisors here, and the CDPH MCL proposal here.
