1) Perchlorate polluting water in the Southwest

A toxic chemical used to fuel Cold War-era missiles and the rockets that put man on the moon has left a legacy of contamination across the Southwest, where it pinches the region's already tight supply of drinking water.

The chemical, called perchlorate, pollutes much of the lower Colorado River -- the main water source for 20 million people across the Southwest -- and has forced the shutdown of hundreds (300+) of wells in California.

State and federal officials are still debating how much risk perchlorate poses when ingested and what limits should be set for the chemical, a process slowed partly by lawsuits filed by defense contractors such as Lockheed Martin Corp. that worry they could be on the hook for billions of dollars in cleanup costs.

Thousands of people have sued the companies that once made or handled perchlorate, alleging years of drinking water laced with the chemical have caused cancers and other illnesses.

Adrienne Wise-Tates, 46, has had tumors of the brain and ovaries, multiple cysts in her breasts, cancerous cells found when she had a goiter removed and, most recently, an unknown mass in her left kidney.

The mother of three blames the perchlorate-tainted water she drank while growing up in Redlands. There, 70 miles east of Los Angeles, nearly 1,000 people are suing Lockheed Martin over perchlorate pollution associated with a former rocket engine testing facility that closed in the 1970s.

"I played in the water, drank the water, everything. The normal things a child does," Wise-Tates said. "Since it was so much in this area, in the water, that's what I attribute it to."

Lockheed spokeswoman Gail Rymer said the company is "vigorously" defending itself against the claims.

"We do not feel that anyone was harmed or has been made ill as a result of our operations at the former Lockheed Propulsion Co. site," Rymer said.

The oxygen-rich chemical interferes with the way the body takes iodide into the thyroid and can disrupt how the gland regulates metabolism. It's unclear how much is dangerous.

Initially, it was thought perchlorate pollution would be restricted to places where rocket fuel was made or used. However, it's since been tied to plants around the country that made munitions, fireworks and even the charges that deploy airbags.

"Anything that explodes seems to be associated with perchlorate," said David Spath, chief of the division of drinking water and environmental management for the California Department of Health Services.

Along with explosives, naturally perchlorate-rich fertilizer imported from Chile has contaminated wells on New York's Long Island, forcing some to close.

"We need to be able to say to people that this is a problem, it is a big problem. It is moving rapidly. It is in 22 states and we need to address it," said Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif. "We don't need to panic, but we need to do it in a way that's cost-effective and makes sense."

The single largest source of contamination is a former Kerr-McGee Corp. rocket fuel plant outside Las Vegas.

For decades, waste water containing perchlorate was left to seep into the ground, a company official said.

"There were probably 20-plus years when we didn't have the environmental awareness we have today," said Pat Corbett, the former plant manager who is now the company's environmental technology director.

The site still leaches as much as 900 pounds of perchlorate a day into a wash that drains into the Colorado River, the main water source for much of Arizona, southern California and southern Nevada.

Across the nation, millions more eat vegetables grown with Colorado River water. What risk the vegetables could pose, if any, is unknown.

"It's really one of the most massive pollution problems the water industry has ever seen," said Timothy Brick, a member of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.

Across California, nearly 300 wells are contaminated. Most are in Los Angeles, Riverside and San Bernardino counties, where dozens of aerospace factories hummed during the Cold War.

California officials have proposed what they consider a safe level of perchlorate of two to six parts per billion and hope to set the nation's first standard by 2004. However, Lockheed Martin and Kerr-McGee forced the state to submit the draft recommendation to further outside review, including by industry-picked experts, delaying the process by months.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's draft proposal is stricter: one part per billion.

Perchlorate in the Colorado River has been measured as high as 9 parts per billion.

It will take years to discover the extent of perchlorate contamination nationwide, and cleanup will take decades more, to the consternation of people like Wise-Tates.

2) Wisconsin Water pollution

Why Taxpayers are Concerned about the Proposed Slaughter Yards and Feed Lots.
The potential for water pollution damage from a slaughter yard, feedlot, ethanol plant combination is tremendous. Well-documented reports of pollution problems are quite numerous. Here in Wisconsin the Department of Natural Resources levied a fine for over $300,000 against the operators of a beef slaughter yard in Norwalk. The problem: extreme water pollution. The yard was shut down while corrective measures were taken. In most of Adams County there is a thin layer of topsoil on top of deep layers of loose sand. Most of the county was at one time the lakebed of glacial Lake Wisconsin. The Quality Beef proposal involves spreading manure out over nearby acreage which would serve as a septic tank. The amount of manure produced by 25,000 cattle in the immediate area would be about 1.5 million pounds per day. The stench caused by manure spreading would be inescapably present every day of the year. The manure also would likely leach hazardous pollution and bacteria into the groundwater. Heavy rains could result in spillover into streams and rivers - not a very nice gift for the fishermen who enjoy our waters. These messes may have to be cleaned up at taxpayer's expense.

3) New Jersey-- Greenwich wells test positive for carcinogen

April 2003
GREENWICH TWP. -- A cancer-causing chemical found in several private wells at a 76-home development off Willow Grove Road is fueling worry among the development's residents.

One-third of the wells tested at the Pacesetter development have come back positive for the carcinogen trichloroethylene, more commonly referred to as TCE, which is often found in paint, spot removers, carpet-cleaning fluids, metal cleaners and varnishes. It was first detected last month when a well was tested during a real-estate transaction, according to town officials.

Under the new Private Well Testing Act enacted in September 2002, certain wells must be tested as a condition of a sale.

After the first test came back positive, the township decided to test the surrounding wells. Each of the 76 homes has its own well.

So far, about 15 wells have been tested by a private company hired by Greenwich. Five have come back positive for TCE, according to officials. Plans are to test all remaining wells.

Residents in the development are worried. Within days, news of the TCE contamination spread through the community with neighbors phoning one another.

Elisabeth Taylor, who has lived here for six years, said she was shocked when she received a call from her neighbor. She said her husband had heard of TCE, but she never had. She has since spent hours researching the chemical.

Although their well came back negative for TCE, Taylor is fearful for her family's safety.

"It's scary to think that we've been drinking this water not knowing this was in it," she said.

Long-term exposure to TCE can cause vomiting and abdominal pains, liver damage and cancer, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Web site. No health risks have been documented with short-term exposure.

Township Committeeman Jeff Mallory, who also lives in the development, said he and his neighbors aren't sure what they're dealing with since each Web site says something different.

That only fuels their worries. His well has tested positive for the chemical. The state limit is 1 part per billion. The first test of his well came back at 1.5 parts per billion, the second test at 1.6 parts per billion.

Mallory said he and his wife have "always been a little uncertain about the well water."

The family isn't drinking the water, but they are showering and doing laundry with it. He said he is concerned, but realizes there isn't reason to be fanatical and thinks the risk is minimal.

Mallory said the homeowners are stuck in a waiting game until the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection completes its testing. Once the number of contaminated wells reaches 5, the DEP starts an investigation. So far, the agency hasn't been able to find the source.

The DEP has set a meeting for all Greenwich residents with wells at 7 p.m. May 7 at the township municipal building. DEP officials are scheduled to address concerns at that time and suggest ways residents can protect their wells.

Committeewoman Elaine Emiliani, who is liaison to the Greenwich Board of Health, said the township isn't sure when the TCE entered the water supply. Before the act was passed in 2002, there wasn't any mandate requiring well testing. Some were tested, others weren't.

All 76 homeowners have been alerted and are being asked to provide data from when their wells were last tested in hopes of finding the origin. Emiliani said this is the first known case of TCE contamination in Greenwich Township.

In the mid-1980s, high levels of the chemical were found in 50 wells in the Route 57 valley joining Washington and Franklin townships. The theory is that it is migrating westward, Emiliani said. The Pacesetter development is right on the border of Greenwich and Franklin townships.

While she understands residents have concern, Emiliani pointed out that the amounts of TCE that have been detected are minimal. She said they are above the state's limit of 1 ppb, but not by much. Each contaminated well varies.

Emiliani also pointed out that side effects are usually seen after at least 30 years exposure. The wells in the Pacesetter development have been tested several times in the last 30 years, and the community was built about 25 years ago.

The committeewoman said residents can drink the water since the TCE is at a minimum, but she said most are too afraid to do so.

"There is no reason to panic," she said.

Taylor said she isn't taking any chances.

"It's bottled water only," she said.