Chromium-6

I’m sure you remember the movie Erin Brockovich, right. Well, would it surprise you that recent studies show that an estimated 200 million Americans may be consuming unsafe levels of the same metal made famous by the that movie (Chromium-6)?

EWG (Environmental Protection Group), an advocacy group, has found the 90% of some 60,000 water samples have levels at or above .02 parts per million. The .02 number referenced is the goal set by the California Environmental Protection Agency. In fact, the results of those same tests in Oakland County, MI concluded that 23 of 25 systems tested positive for Chromium-6. And the average reading was .08544 parts per billion. Significantly higher than the .02 ppb goal in California, and in tests in many cities in Oakland county the results were higher than the .10 legal limit in California.

All of this continues to surprise me. It seems like we should be made increasingly aware of potentially harmful contaminants in our water. Not only that, but I am also alarmed at how difficult it is to find information relating to the quality of the water we drink. When I have come across local municipal reports, they are impossible to read. If the general consensus is that we have good water, then why do I continue to read reports to the contrary?

Chromium-6 is just one of the elements tested for. The list of elements actually tested in our municipal water sources is long (lead, copper, mercury, arsenic, etc.) Many of them can be harmful even in minute quantities.

So the question is how can I protect myself, my children, my employees, or my customers. I don’t have the answers to all of those questions, however, I do know that reverse osmosis is the most internationally accepted form of water purification. Oh and by the way, it is relatively inexpensive.