Millions of people are exposed to unsafe drinking water every year in the US. Yearly from 1982 to 2015, between 9 million and 45 million Americans got their drinking water from a source that violated the standards of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
*In 2018, Milwaukee’s health commissioner resigned amid news that public health officials failed to warn families whose children tested positive for elevated lead levels from 2015 to 2017.
*Washington, DC has seen lead-contaminated water since the early 2000s. By 2016, around 12,000 DC buildings were still getting their water from lead pipes.
*Brady, Texas has encountered radium levels nine times higher than the EPA limit. Residents report that the tap water can be orange, brown, or even green in color.
*Pittsburgh,PA has also struggled to combat high levels of lead in drinking water. The EPA reports that there are not enough state officials to perform mandatory inspections..
*In 2016, a 1.3 billion-gallon reservoir in Newburgh, NY, tested positive for a dangerous pollutant called perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), which has been linked to cancer and chronic kidney disease.
*Charleston, WV, is still recovering from a massive chemical spill. In 2014 Freedom Industries leaked MCHM, a chemical foam used to wash coal, into the Elk River. As late as 2017, the nonprofit Environmental Working Group found multiple contaminants in the city’s water supply.
*Water in Dos Palos, California has toxic chemicals linked to cancer and kidney problems. From 2013 to 2018, the city’s well failed at least 22 safety tests.
