High levels of arsenic found in rural Texas drinking water
Water provided to around 51,000 people in rural Texas has had high levels of arsenic for more than 10 years, according to a new study set to be published Monday by the Environmental Integrity Project.
The arsenic levels are higher than federal government standards for drinking water, which were set at 10 parts per billion in 2006 by the Safe Drinking Water Act. Arsenic is a known carcinogen.
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The water systems identified by the report are in western and southern Texas.
"The high levels in a few of those regions are worrisome and have clearly been associated with increased cancer risk"
Residents in most of the affected communities have been drinking water with 10 to 20 parts per billion of arsenic.
But communities such as Jim Hogg County have been drinking water that has had five times the safe amount of arsenic for five years.
“The high levels in a few of those regions are worrisome and have clearly been associated with increased cancer risk on a par with tobacco use,” J. Christopher States, author of "Arsenic: Exposure Sources, Health Risks and Mechanisms of Toxicity," told The Austin-American Statesman.
But Michael Honeycutt, who runs the toxicology division at the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, told the Statesman that the arsenic levels are only a "long-term concern."
The Safe Drinking Water Act requires water-providers to provide a note of warning to customers with drinking water that contains high levels of arsenic.
That note lists the risks of long-term exposure, including cancer, skin damage and circulatory trouble. But notes provided by Texas companies have also said that the problem is "not an emergency" and residents "do not need to use an alternative water supply."
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Colin is Mashable's US & World Reporter. He previously interned at Foreign Policy magazine and The American Prospect. Colin is a graduate from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. When he's not at Mashable, you can most likely find him eating or playing some kind of sport.
