Study: Water contaminant can cause cancer (duh)

[gulfcoastliberal]

WASHINGTON - Growing scientific evidence suggests the most widespread industrial contaminant in drinking water — a solvent used in adhesives, paint and spot removers — can cause cancer in people.

The National Academy of Sciences reported Thursday that a lot more is known about the cancer risks and other health hazards from exposure to trichloroethylene than there was five years ago when the
Environmental Protection Agency took steps to regulate it more strictly.

"Armed with the results from the NAS review, EPA will aggressively move forward" on a new risk assessment of TCE, spokeswoman Jennifer Wood said Thursday. "EPA will determine whether or not to address the drinking water standard once the risk assessment is complete."

TCE, which is also widely used to remove grease from metal parts in airplanes and to clean fuel lines at missile sites, is known to cause cancer in some laboratory animals. EPA was blocked from elevating its assessment of the chemical's risks in people by the Defense Department, Energy Department and
NASA, all of which have sites polluted with it.

http://tinyurl.com/esopz

But at least t's a sweet tasting toxin!: TCE is a colorless liquid that evaporates at room temperatures and has a somewhat sweet odor and taste.

Yummy! Shaken, not stirred.

[Dead_Parrot]

1. Hmmm

"EPA will determine whether or not to address the drinking water standard once the risk assessment is complete." = "If the companies dumping this shit pay us enough we'll ignore it"

I'm getting the hang of this EPA lark.

[LiberalEsto]

2. TCE was called a carcinogen over 25 years ago

As a news reporter in NJ in the early 1980s, I used a hazardous materials booklet from the EPA to get more information on the many hazmat spills and toxic waste discoveries that happened in central NJ.

TCE was just one of the many nasty things that spilled from waste trucks or oozed from half-buried 55-gallon metal drums at toxic dump sites. The EPA hazmat guide gave information on a substance's toxicity, flammability, cancer-causing potential and more. TCE was on that list.

If they are still wondering whether TCE is a risk in drinking water, the EPA must have suffered collective amnesia in recent years.

I wonder why? :sarcasm:

[ramapo]

3. And it is everywhere

It is a pervasive contaminant. At least it tastes good.