AUSTIN (KXAN) — A new report from the advocacy nonprofit Environmental Working Group (EWG) claims to have found arsenic, nitrate and hexavalent chromium, in Central Texas’ water supplies. Hexavalent chromium, or chromium-6, has been linked to various forms of cancer.
The report, published in the November issue of Environmental Research, looks at removing all three contaminants together as opposed to one at a time. As part of the report, the EWA created a map that shows where contaminates were detected.
The researchers collected state-level agencies’ data from between 2011 and 2023, according to EWG senior science analyst Sydney Evans.
“The utilities take water testing data, submit that to their various state agencies. Where we went to the state, got that information, cleaned it up, and analyzed it,” Evans said.
The EWG’s “Tap Water Database” has faced criticism in the past. The City of Everett, WA said in a 2023 report that the “EWA selectively chooses the guidelines by which they measure water quality.”
What is hexavalent chromium?
A compound used by industrial processes, hexavalent chromium is rarely found in nature.
“Erin Brockovich kind of discovered hexavalent chromium as a drinking water contaminant, and how widespread it was,” Evans said.
In 1993, Brockovich and attorney Ed Masry discovered widespread illness in the town of Hinkley, CA. The team discovered that Pacific Gas and Electric had used hexavalent chromium in a water tower, which had then worked its way into the town’s groundwater.
Ingestion through drinking water has been linked to cancers in the small intestine and mouth, as well as several other illnesses.
Where it was detected
Chromium-6 was detected in the drinking water of Austin, San Marcos, Taylor and several other communities, according to the report. The report says that researchers averaged all the test results for each contaminant, chromium-6, arsenic and nitrate, for every community water system during the period covered by the data, 2011 to 2023.
According to the map, the city of Austin reported 0.175ppb of hexavalent chromium. The City of Taylor reported 0.029ppb while the San Marcos reported 0.078ppb.
“At present, Chromium-6 has not been detected in the City’s drinking water at levels requiring treatment,” said the city of San Marcos in a statement. “If future federal or state regulations set a specific limit for Chromium-6, the City will implement any necessary treatment technologies to remain in compliance and continue to provide safe drinking water to the community.”
The city of San Marcos had nitrates reported in their drinking water (1700 parts per billion), while the city of Taylor had nitrates (800ppb) and arsenic (3.3ppb) reported in their water.
“We meet Federal and State requirements as they relate to Arsenic and Nitrate. We are not aware of regular testing of Chromium-6, nor any requirements for testing,” said the city of Taylor in a statement.
The city of Austin said that its annual compliance tests have not detected chromium-6 within the last decade.
“The health and safety of our customers remain our highest priority, and Austin Water is dedicated to meeting state and federal requirements to protect our community’s water quality. State and federal drinking water regulations require routine monitoring for total chromium, which includes chromium-6, to determine compliance,” reads the city’s statement.
Regulations for hexavalent chromium
Currently, there is no national limit on the amount of hexavalent chromium in a water supply. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has a goal, established in 1991, of 100ppb (parts per billion). The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality matches this goal as its standard and as a limit.
“Legally, for the most part, all of these things that are popping up on our map and in our findings are perfectly legal. However, they are not safe based on health science,” Evans said.
Some states have placed greater restrictions in place. The state of California passed a law in 2024 setting their limit to 10ppb.
“Normal drinking water treatment will not reduce hexavalent chromium. You need that advanced water treatment like something like ion exchange, but when looking at the cost versus the benefits, sometimes the cost can be fairly high,” Evans said.
The EPA does have limits in place for arsenic and nitrates, with nitrates limited to 10,000ppb and arsenic to 10ppb.
Evans is pushing for local communities to go above and beyond the federal and national regulations.
“There doesn’t have to be regulation for a contaminant, for a drinking water system to install more treatment and to lower these levels,” she said.
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