Heads up. .... After California state regulators shut down 11 fracking waste water injection wells last July over concerns that the waste water might have contaminated aquifers used for drinking water and farm irrigation, the EPA ordered a report within 60 days. It was revealed yesterday that the California State Water Resources Board has sent a letter to the EPA confirming that at least nine of those sites were in fact dumping waste water contaminated with fracking fluids and other pollutants into aquifers protected by state law and the federal Safe Drinking Water Act. The letter, a copy of which was obtained by the Center for Biological Diversity, reveals that nearly 3 billion gallons of waste water were illegally injected into central California aquifers and that half of the water samples collected at the 8 water supply wells tested near the injection sites have high levels of dangerous chemicals such as arsenic, a known carcinogen that can also weaken the human immune system, and thallium, a toxin used in rat poison. Timothy Krantz, a professor of environmental studies at the University of Redlands, says these chemicals could pose a serious risk to public health: “The fact that high concentrations are showing up in multiple water wells close to waste water injection sites raises major concerns about the health and safety of nearby residents.” desmogblog/2014/10/07/central-california-aquifers-contaminated-billions-gallons-fracking-wastewater
Posted on: Sat, 11 Oct 2014 02:17:27 +0000
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