Volume 151, No. 1 covering the 1st Session of the 109th Congress (2005 - 2006) was published by the Congressional Record.
The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“SAFE DRINKING WATER FOR HEALTHY COMMUNITIES ACT OF 2005” mentioning the Environmental Protection Agency was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E23 on Jan. 4, 2005.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
SAFE DRINKING WATER FOR HEALTHY COMMUNITIES ACT OF 2005
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HON. HILDA L. SOLIS
of california
in the house of representatives
Tuesday, January 4, 2005
Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to introduce the Safe Drinking Water for Healthy Communities Act of 2005. This legislation will require the Environmental Protection Agency to establish a national primary standard for drinking water for perchlorate, a component of rocket fuel used heavily by the military and its defense contractors.
Communities across the country are finding perchlorate in their drinking water, groundwater, irrigation water, soil and food. Perchlorate has been linked to disruption of the thyroid, resulting in behavior changes and delayed development in children and thyroid tumors in adults. Today more than 120 wells in Los Angeles County have been found to be contaminated with varying levels of perchlorate and my community alone faces costs of at least $200 million over the next 15 years to manage and contain perchlorate.
Perchlorate removes valuable water supplies from service and can contaminate our food supply. Yet there exists no enforceable public health standard to ensure our drinking water is safe and to prevent further contamination. At the current rate the Environmental Protection Agency has stated it could not begin to promulgate a public health standard for perchlorate until 2007, if it chooses to do so. Ultimately it is the responsibility of Congress to make sure that the public can trust its water supply, that water providers have guidance, and that those responsible for contamination know that contaminating the water supply and threatening public health is not acceptable.
This bill requires the EPA to establish an enforceable national primary drinking water standard by July, 2007. Without this, there is no requirement for water to have safe levels of perchlorate and water providers will continue to struggle with guaranteeing long term reliability of safe water sources. Inaction poses an unreasonable risk to both our valuable water supply and our health.
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