Drinking Water

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) took the California Department of Public Health to task Monday for “dragging its feet” on setting new limits on chromium 6 in drinking water, adding to a growing chorus of frustration among local officials. In a letter sent to the department's director Monday, Schiff called the years-long process for setting more strict contamination limits “unconscionable.” “I want to try to light a fire under them to get moving,” Schiff said in a phone interview.

Glendale Water & Power has started testing a new filtration method to strip chromium 6 from groundwater and plans to start the process for other techniques next month. Previous methods have had some drawbacks, prompting the fresh approaches. Filtration adds an extra step to current testing, but the others, which include using resins and absorption technology to suck out the cancer-causing contaminant, are new ventures. “We're blazing the trail here,” said Charles Cron, plant manager at a chromium 6 testing facility in northwest Glendale.

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) increased pressure on the Environmental Protection Agency Wednesday to issue a long-awaited final report on the health impact of water tainted with chromium 6 on humans, calling the slow progress “unconscionable.” In his letter to U.S. EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, the congressman whose district has a long-running problem with chromium 6 contamination of underground water said the agency “must stop wasting time...

Congressman Adam Schiff announced this week that a federal study has linked Chromium 6 in drinking water to cancer in lab animals. Schiff has been the leader in Washington to support efforts by Glendale Water and Power to find ways of eliminating the metal from drinking water. Chromium is a byproduct of manufacturing efforts in years past in the east San Fernando Valley. According to Schiff, a two-year study by the National Institute of Health's National Toxicology Program found that high doses of chromium 6 in drinking water cause cancer in lab rodents.

Claudia Peschiutta GLENDALE -- Rep. Adam Schiff and other members of the California Congressional delegation are asking for an answers about chromium 6 and its effects. Schiff (D-Glendale) and 10 fellow legislators sent a letter Tuesday urging the National Toxicology Program to conduct a study to determine the carcinogenicity of chromium 6 in drinking water. Low levels of chromium 6 have been discovered in drinking water available to Glendale.

Buck Wargo CITY HALL -- Glendale is looking at ways to reduce the level of chromium 6 in drinking water and show the public its supply coming out of the faucet is safe. In an interview Thursday, City Manager Jim Starbird said he wants to alleviate public concerns and ensure that Glendale's drinking supply will be safe when ground water from the contaminated San Fernando Basin aquifer is used by the city Sept. 25 for the first time in decades. The city announced it will hire a consultant to review potentially costly options, and test drinking water at sampling stations in front of homes.

In light of the recent news coverage of the carcinogen 6, I am glad to see that state Sen. Adam Schiff has taken a leading role in the fight to ensure that our local drinking water is safe. As a person who judges politicians by their actions not their words, Schiff's introduction of a bill requiring the Department of Health to test for levels of chromium 6 in our drinking water demonstrates his concern for our families. As a Burbank resident and mother I shudder to think that our water supply may be unsafe.

Buck Wargo GLENDALE -- Gov. Gray Davis signed a bill Friday that would speed up a review of the health effects of chromium 6 in the drinking water. The bill authored by Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Glendale) requires the state Department of Health Services to complete the study by January 2002. State health officials had previously said such a review would take five more years. The Department of Health Services is deciding whether the standard for total chromium in drinking water -- presently at 50 parts per billion -- should be lowered.

Buck Wargo CITY HALL -- State Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Glendale) is trying to get the state to fast track a study on the effects of having chromium 6 in the drinking water of Glendale, Burbank and other San Fernando Valley residents. Schiff introduced legislation Wednesday that called on the State Department of Public Health to complete a study by January 2002 on whether the level of chromium in drinking water taken from the San Fernando Basin aquifer should be reduced.

Buck Wargo GLENDALE -- A bill that would speed up the review of the health effects of chromium 6 in drinking water barely made it to the desk of the governor. In a vote minutes before the close of the legislative session at midnight Thursday, the Senate voted 23-11 to approve a bill authored by Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Glendale) that would require the California Department of Health Services complete the study by 2002, the legislator said. "We couldn't cut it any closer than we did," Schiff said.

As the sounds of a generator echoed through Glendale's largest reservoir, about 15 residents descended 32 feet underground into the facility's large concrete chamber. “Just thinking that I'm standing where I'll be drinking water from is an amazing experience,” said Hector Lavanchy, whose home neighbors the Diederich Reservoir. Wednesday marked the first time the public could view the south section of the reservoir, which has been undergoing construction improvements for more than a year.

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) increased pressure on the Environmental Protection Agency Wednesday to issue a long-awaited final report on the health impact of water tainted with chromium 6 on humans, calling the slow progress “unconscionable.” In his letter to U.S. EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, the congressman whose district has a long-running problem with chromium 6 contamination of underground water said the agency “must stop wasting time...

Glendale Water & Power has started testing a new filtration method to strip chromium 6 from groundwater and plans to start the process for other techniques next month. Previous methods have had some drawbacks, prompting the fresh approaches. Filtration adds an extra step to current testing, but the others, which include using resins and absorption technology to suck out the cancer-causing contaminant, are new ventures. “We're blazing the trail here,” said Charles Cron, plant manager at a chromium 6 testing facility in northwest Glendale.

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) took the California Department of Public Health to task Monday for “dragging its feet” on setting new limits on chromium 6 in drinking water, adding to a growing chorus of frustration among local officials. In a letter sent to the department's director Monday, Schiff called the years-long process for setting more strict contamination limits “unconscionable.” “I want to try to light a fire under them to get moving,” Schiff said in a phone interview.

Glendale Water & Power plans to spend another $550,000 on a research project for stripping cancer-causing chromium 6 from local groundwater that already has cost $7.8 million. City officials say they need to make the expenditure because the current removal method has some drawbacks and the state may tighten restrictions. The additional funding comes from a coalition of stakeholders as California officials consider tightening restrictions on how much of the toxic element - already at 50 parts per billion - is allowed in potable water.

One of the most widespread groundwater contaminants in the nation is more dangerous to humans than earlier thought, a federal agency has determined, in a decision that could raise the cost of cleanups nationwide, including large areas of the San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys. The final risk assessment for trichloroethylene by the Environmental Protection Agency found that the widely used industrial solvent causes kidney and liver cancer , lymphoma and other health problems.

For the handful of house guests that showed up at the Porters unannounced on Tuesday, it’s been shredded lettuce and water on the menu as the Glendale family figures out what to do with their guests. Four ducklings have suddenly become dependent on the family after their mother flew away in a panic as Lin and Brett Porter cornered the ducklings with a net and removed them from the pool. The 20-minute-long effort had the ducklings chirping and diving under water to evade capture.

GLENDALE — Legislators want more fresh water in schools, but they won't pay for it. They moved a bill to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger earlier this month that, if signed, requires schools to make fresh water more available to students before next summer. The bill's intent could be satisfied by providing disposable cups and pitchers of water, or bottled water to students during mealtimes. Advocates said making water more readily available would set children on a path for healthy habits throughout their lives, and help their learning and focus in the classroom.

GLENDALE ? Drinking water at schools within the Glendale Unified School District is safe. Though an Associated Press report last month uncovered unsafe levels of lead, pesticides and dozens of other toxins in public and private schools, local schools haven?t had a problem. ?It?s a general problem all over the country and depends on whether you?re taking the water from wells or from the city itself,? said Massoud Pirbazari, an engineering professor and the environmental engineering program director at USC. Metropolitan Water District, which supplies 70% of Glendale?

CITY HALL — On the bulletin board across from his desk, Patrick Hayes keeps a picture of the 2006 Linda Vista main break as a constant reminder of the damage that can be caused by failed pipes. The after-effects of major main breaks — including flooding and street damage — often require extensive repairs with high price tags for the city. They can also cause major annoyances for residents. “It’s not just the cost of the repair. It’s the social cost,” said Hayes, principal engineer with Glendale Water & Power.