Groundwater Contamination Continues to Spread
Posted by
Helen ZukinOctober 02, 2006 3:00 AMGroundwater contamination is a serious health threat to the public. Toxic substances in our drinking water pose dangers to our population.
Throughout the U.S. groundwater is increasingly becoming contaminated with a variety of toxic substances; ranging from radioactive tritium to trichloroethylene (TCE); to name just a few. The underground aquifers which supply so much of our nations water have been slowly absorbing toxic byproducts from manufacturing facilities, government military bases and nuclear power plants.
For decades these facilities operated without any governmental oversight and poured hazardous materials into the ground, without any thought to the long term environmental consequences. Now, in the 21st century, we are faced with this toxic legacy, and our state and federal environmental agencies are struggling to assess the magnitude of the threat to drinking water. In addition, public health officials are working to strategize effective clean-up efforts.
Unfortunately, the U.S. EPA has failed to set stringent standards for cleanup goals of contaminated water supplies. For this reason, many states have stepped in to establish their own regulations for drinking water.
"The states are again acting in the face of inaction by federal EPA" said Bill Walker of the Environmental Working Group, an environmental health advocacy organization.
Kiesel Boucher Larson has extensive experience in the area of groundwater contamination litigation and works to enforce our state and federal environmental laws.