Delaware Drinking Water Suppliers To Eliminate Dry Cleaning Chemical From Drinking Water

Lt. Governor Praises Plans to Reduce Tetrachloroethylene Below Current Legal Requirements

For Immediate Release: Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Dover - Lieutenant Governor Matt Denn and two of the state’s water suppliers announced today that the water suppliers would install systems to effectively remove tetrachloroethylene, a chemical used in dry cleaning, from their drinking water. The water suppliers, Artesian Water and the City of Georgetown, are currently in compliance with all federal limits on tetrachloroethylene, but have decided to install carbon filtration equipment to ensure proper and full protection of public health.

The International Agency for Research on Cancer has classified tetrachloroethylene as probably carcinogenic to humans. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) classified tetrachloroethylene approximately twenty years ago as being between its categories of “probable” and “possible” carcinogens, but is currently revisiting that classification to determine if the classification should be heightened. The EPA has placed tetrachloroethylene on its Candidate Contaminant List for review of the drinking water standard set for this substance.

“I want to commend both Artesian and the City of Georgetown for going above and beyond their current legal responsibilities to look out for the health of their customers,” Lt. Governor Denn said. “When I approached these suppliers about the tetrachloroethylene issue, they were both eager to be proactive and to go beyond the requirements of current drinking water standards.”

Tetrachloroethylene can be removed from drinking water through a relatively simple carbon filtration process. The state’s Division of Public Health plans to prioritize the installation of such systems when allocating its next cycle of federal clean drinking water funds.

Dian Taylor, president and CEO of Artesian, said “This is yet another example of Artesian’s commitment to superior service and providing the best quality drinking water possible to our customers. We far surpass all health and environmental standards and we have and will continue to actively work with government agencies to address these issues.”

Later this year, the state’s Division of Public Health will consider lowering the state’s permissible levels of tetrachloroethylene below the current standard set by the EPA. “Our initial view of the science is that it supports lowering the legal limit,” said Edward Hallock, Administrator of the Division of Public Health’s Drinking Water Program. “However, we will have an open regulatory process where we will consider all views on both the science and any other issues that may be relevant to our decision.”

No regulated Delaware water suppliers other than Artesian and the City of Georgetown have had ongoing amounts of tetrachloroethylene in their water exceeding DPH’s ability to reliably detect the chemical.