The discovery of widespread lead contamination in Washington, D.C. drinking water resulted in a Congressional investigation that damaged the scientific reputation of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), left thousands of children with lifelong health risks, and led to a re-evaluation of the use of chloramine in public drinking-water systems. Marc Edwards, an expert in plumbing corrosion, discovered lead levels at least 83 times higher than the accepted safe limit while performing research into premature pipe corrosion for the District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (WASA). He found that the decision to change from using chlorine to chloramine as a treatment chemical had caused the spike in lead levels. After the Washington Post ran a series of front-page articles about Edwards's findings, resulting in widespread public concern, the United States House of Representatives conducted an investigation. The House found that the CDC had made "scientifically indefensible" claims in a report that had indicated there was no risk from the high lead levels. The Post investigation uncovered evidence of widespread misreporting of lead levels at water agencies across the United States, leading to regulatory crackdowns and changes in Environmental Protection Agency policies.
The problem was addressed in 2004 by adding additional treatments to the water, preventing the chloramine from dissolving lead in the water mains, solder joints, and fixtures.
In 2010, the CDC reported that 15,000 homes in the Washington, D.C. area might still have water supplies with dangerous levels of lead.
Read more about Lead Contamination In Washington, D.C. Drinking Water: 2001–2004: Initial Reports of Elevated Lead, 2004: Washington Post, 2004: The CDC Report, 2004–2005: Government Hearings, 2004: Other Cities Investigated, 2005–2006: Lower Lead Levels, 2006–2010: EPA, CDC, Expert Reports Faulted
Famous quotes containing the words drinking water, lead, drinking and/or water:
“When drinking water, think of its source.”
—Chinese proverb.
“[Uniting workers should not] lead to a war upon property, or the owners of property.”
—Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865)
“That sound, everywhere about us, of the sea—
the tree among its tresses has always heard it,
and the horse dips his black body in the sound
stretching his neck as if towards drinking water ...”
—Denise Levertov (b. 1923)
“The clock runs down
timeless and still.
The days and nights turn hours to years
and water in a gutter marks the circle of another world
hating, resentful, and afraid
stagnant, and green, and full of slimy things.”
—Margaret Abigail Walker (b. 1915)