Views Mixed on Perchlorate Regulation

Online, February 3, 2011 (Newswire.com) - WASHINGTON, (UPI) -- Reactions were mixed to a move by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to monitor levels of known carcinogen perchlorate in drinking water.

The EPA said Wednesday it would regulate the volatile organic compound perchlorate in drinking water, noting it would take about two years to develop an effective regulation plan.

"(C)lean and safe water is not a luxury or a privilege, it is a right of all Americans," said EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson in statements to U.S. lawmakers.

The EPA added it would monitor other chemicals known to have harmful effects on human health at high enough doses.

U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., who sits on the Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, said the decision was the right step to protect the health of U.S. consumers.

"Americans simply shouldn't have to worry that the water they drink and cook with will make them sick," she said in a statement.

But the Perchlorate Information Bureau, an industry-supported group, said the EPA decision wasn't backed up by scientific evidence.

The PIB said in a statement that it found "no research" to support health claims regarding perchlorate. It pointed to a 2010 EPA study that found "further reducing the perchlorate exposure ... does not effectively lower risk."

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