U.S. EPA Issues Drinking Water Microcystin Guidelines

Source: The Hannah Report

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) issued its long-awaited health advisory standards for microcystin, the harmful algal bloom toxin responsible for the drinking water ban in Toledo last summer.

U.S. EPA recommends states and localities issue drinking water health advisories at 0.3 parts per billion (ppb) for children younger than school age and 1.6 ppb for those older than that, according to a news release from the agency. These are the first advisory values ever issued by the agency, and there is no binding standard.

Most states including Ohio have been using the World Health Organization (WHO) standard of 1 ppb for everybody. The agency noted these values are based on exposure for 10 days, not a single drink of water contaminated with the toxin.

“While briefly exceeding these advisory levels may not indicate an immediate emergency, U.S. EPA recommends utilities use treatment techniques to lower levels as quickly as possible,” the agency said. “Potential health effects from longer exposure to higher levels of algal toxins in drinking water include gastroenteritis and liver and kidney damage.”

Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA) Director Craig Butler said his agency has been waiting on U.S. EPA to issue these numbers, and that the state would use them as soon as they were released. (See The Hannah Report, 10/10/14.) U.S. Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Rob Portman (R-OH) have pushed for U.S. EPA to publish health advisories and submit reports on microcystin levels in drinking water with their Safe and Secure Drinking Water Act.

Portman applauded the U.S. EPA in a statement on Wednesday.

“I’m pleased the U.S. EPA is issuing guidelines that will help communities in Ohio make informed decisions on how best to protect their drinking water from harmful contaminants,” Portman said. “This is a good first step, but we must continue to work together to improve the underlying health of Lake Erie. It’s crucial that all levels of government work together to identify what is safe, and what is not.”

U.S. EPA said it will issue the final documents containing the health advisory values, recommended monitoring and treatment approaches, and all supporting technical information before summer, which is prime season for algal blooms because of warmer temperatures. U.S. EPA estimates that between 30 and 48 million people use drinking water from lakes and reservoirs that may be vulnerable to algal toxin contamination.

“Nutrient pollution and harmful algal blooms are among America’s most serious and growing environmental challenges,” said U.S. EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy in a statement. “U.S. EPA has released health advisory values on algal toxins based on the best available science to ensure the safety of America’s drinking water. We will work closely with our partners at the state and local levels on monitoring, treating, and communicating about the toxins, as well as addressing the sources of nutrients that fuel these harmful algal blooms.”

U.S. EPA also issued advisory levels for cylindrospermopsin, another algal toxin. The agency recommends 0.7 ppb is unsafe for young children, while 3.0 ppb is unsafe for older children and adults.

U.S. EPA said it worked with Health Canada to develop the health advisories, and that the WHO has indicated it will use the health advisories developed by U.S. EPA to reevaluate global recommendations for levels of algal toxins.

“As the science on the health impacts of algal toxins continues to improve, U.S. EPA will track developments and update recommendations as appropriate,” the agency said.

Story originally published in The Hannah Report on May 6, 2015. Copyright 2015 Hannah News Service, Inc.