Limit 1,4-Dioxane in Water

Section two establishes the effective date.

Justification

The discovery of prevalent 1,4 -Dioxane contamination in public water supply wells on Long Island has many local residents on edge and local water and health officials uncertain of a clear path forward.

The EPA and US Department of Health and Human Services have established that 1,4-Dioxane is reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen, mostly affecting the Liver and Kidneys. The Environmental Protection Agency(EPA) characterizes 1,4 -Dioxane as a chemical stabilizer used in a variety of chlorinated solvents, paint strippers, dyes, greases, and waxes, as well as in antifreeze and aircraft deicing compounds. Its presence as an industrial contaminant often mirrors that of the solvents to which it is applied. 1,4 -Dioxane is created as a by-product of a processing method of many commonly used ingredients causing it to be found in certain consumer products such as deodorants, detergents, shampoos, and cosmetics.

Currently, there is no national drinking water standard for the chemical 1,4-Dioxane, leaving the standard in New York State at the default level for Unregulated Contaminants of 50 micrograms per liter. In 2014, the EPA identified 1,4-Dioxane as "likely to be carcinogenic to humans" and set a health reference guideline for lifetime exposure at a much lower .35 micrograms per liter. In practice, this EPA guideline serves as a recommendation rather than an actionable detection threshold. The EPA reportedly is investigating the establishment of a specific drinking water standard for 1,4-Dioxane while also assessing its risk in commercial uses under the Toxic Substances Control Act, however, neither of these risk assessments is expected to conclude in the near term.

In addition to EPA's lower 1,4 -Dioxane health reference guideline, numerous states including New Jersey, Massachusetts, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Maine and New Hampshire have established, on their own authority, action levels, concentration guidelines or notification and reporting standards well below New York's current default standard of 50 micrograms per liter.

Many regions of the state -from Nassau County to the Town of Nassau in Rensselaer County have encountered elevated levels of 1,4 Dioxane in ground or drinking water supplies. It appears to be more prevalent on Long Island than anywhere else in the state. Superfund sites such as the former Northrop Grumman Navy Yard in Bethpage and the Dewey Loeffel Landfill in East Nassau have been identified as major point-sources of this contamination. The EPA recently singled out Long Island in a 2016 survey as disproportionately afflicted by 1,4 -Dioxane contamination, discovering concerning concentrations of the chemical in 71 percent of water supply systems, in comparison to 7 percent nationally, likely a vestige of Long Island's diverse industrial past and the susceptibility of our sole source aquifer to contamination

While the State has begun taking action to address 1,4 -Dioxane contamination -recently working with the Suffolk County Water Authority to institute a pilot filtration program -a thorough review and risk assessment, as has been conducted in many similarly afflicted states with similar industrial pasts, would provide guidance and assurance to local water districts attempting to negotiate this emerging contaminant in their community.

Legislative history

This is a new bill.

Budget implications

Minimal.

Effective date

This act would take effect immediately.