Perchance is that Perchlorate in your Water?

A segue from the MTBE liability exclusion for oil companies in the "Energy Conservation Act"....

....maybe Congress can quietly pass a "Water Conservation Act" and get the Pentagon and defense contractors off the hook for the upcoming rash of Perchlorate lawsuits.

Perchlorate, a chemical used in rocket fuel and defense manufacturing has befouled nearly half the drinking water supply of Rialto, California.

The choices faced here, when to close wells, whom to sue and how not to get sued, confront officials in 36 states where the Environmental Protection Agency says perchlorate has been detected.

Six of the city's 13 wells tested positive and the projected cleanup costs ballooned to more than double Rialto's $40 million annual budget. The town sued the Defense Department and dozens of other suspected polluters, pleaded with residents to conserve water and hiked water rates 65 percent.

Pentagon officials, who could face billions in cleanup costs, criticize the 1-part-per-billion standard, instead favoring 200 parts per billion. With Rialto's detections ranging as high as 88 parts per billion, city officials decided to shut down any well where perchlorate was found.

Perchlorate in the Water

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