Final Technical Support Documents for Public Health Goals for 11 Chemicals in Drinking Water

Sep 26, 2003

The Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) of the California Environmental Protection Agency announces the availability of the final technical support documents for a Public Health Goal (PHG) for each of the following eleven (11) chemicals in drinking water: asbestos, barium, beryllium, chlorobenzene, 1,1-dichloroethane, diethylhexyl adipate, ethylene dibromide, hexachlorobenzene, silvex, 1,1,2,2-tetrachloroethane, and toxaphene. The documents will be posted on the OEHHA Web site (www.oehha.ca.gov) on September 26, 2003, along with responses to major review comments. OEHHA has revised the documents as appropriate in response to review comments from the public at the workshop and during the two public review and scientific comment periods (July 22, 2002 and December 06, 2002), as well as from peer reviewers at the University of California system and state and federal agencies.

The PHG technical support documents provide information on the health effects of contaminants in drinking water. The PHG is a level of drinking water contaminant at which adverse health effects are not expected to occur from a lifetime of exposure. The California Safe Drinking Water Act of 1996 (Health and Safety Code Section 116365), amended 1999, requires OEHHA to develop PHGs based exclusively on public health considerations. PHGs published by OEHHA will be considered by the California Department of Health Services in setting drinking water standards (Maximum Contaminant Levels, or MCLs).

If you would like to receive further information on this announcement or have questions, please contact our office at the address below:

Cal/EPA-OEHHA-PETB
Water Toxicology
P.O. Box 4010
Sacramento, CA 95812-4010
(916) 324-7572