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Stormwater Runoff Water Quality Newsletter Devoted to Urban/Rural Stormwater Runoff Volume 13, Number 4 Editor: Anne Jones-Lee, PhD October 13, 2010 Contributor to This Issue: G. Fred Lee, PhD, PE, BCEE, F.ASCE This edition of the Newsletter includes information on: US EPA webcast seminars; recent
findings concerning new, newly recognized, and emerging chemicals that are known to be, or
suspected of being, adverse to drinking water quality and water quality/beneficial uses of
waterbodies; OEHHA Draft Public Health Goal for Trihalomethanes, Selenium and Chromium
in Drinking Water; release of USGS Study of Pharmaceuticals in Wastewater; an In-Stream
Flow Workshop; and the California State Water Resources Control Board’s compilation of
Water Quality Goals.
US EPA Webcast Seminars
“EPA's Watershed Academy sponsors free Webcast seminars. Offered on a monthly basis, live
webcasts are conducted by expert instructors on a range of watershed topics including low
impact development, the Clean Water Act, watershed protection and planning, nutrient
management, and much more. Participants can register to participate in a live webcast or view
the presentations and listen to the streaming audio of archived webcasts.”
http://water.epa.gov/learn/training/wacademy/wacademy_index.cfm
Seminar topics include: * Clean Water Act * Climate Change * Funding * Lakes * Low
Impact Development * Nutrient Management * Outreach and Education * Tools and Data *
Watersheds: Protection and Planning * Wetlands. Past webcasts concerning the Clean Water
Act have included * Monitoring and Assessment Under the Clean Water Act, April 7, 2010 *
Introduction to Water Quality Standards, Sept. 10, 2009 * Introduction to the Clean Water Act,
July 1, 2009 * Opportunities for Citizen Involvement in the Clean Water Act, April 19, 2006
Past seminars and a schedule of future seminars are available at,
http://water.epa.gov/learn/training/wacademy/webcasts_index.cfm
Drinking Water Contaminant Candidate List and Regulatory Determinations
The US EPA has announced the release of Drinking Water Contaminants Candidate List 3 (CCL
3). According to the US EPA: “CCL 3 is a list of contaminants that are currently not subject to
any proposed or promulgated national primary drinking water regulations, that are known or
anticipated to occur in public water systems, and which may require regulation under the Safe
Drinking Water Act (SDWA). The list includes, among others, pesticides, disinfection
byproducts, chemicals used in commerce, waterborne pathogens, pharmaceuticals, and
biological toxins. The Agency considered the best available data and information on health
effects and occurrence to evaluate thousands of unregulated contaminants. EPA used a multi-
step process to select 116 candidates for the final CCL 3. The final CCL 3 includes 104
chemicals or chemical groups and 12 microbiological contaminants.” Information on the list is
available at http://water.epa.gov/scitech/drinkingwater/dws/ccl/ccl3.cfm.

ACWA Comments on Constituents of Emerging Concern
“Comments on April 15, 2010 Draft Monitoring Strategies for Chemicals of Emerging Concern
(CECs) in Recycled Water: Recommendations of a Science Advisory Panel” from ACWA
(Association of California Water Agencies), CASA(California Association of Sanitation
Agencies), NWRI (National Water Research Institute), and WateReuse dated May 15, 2010 are
available at
http://www.acwa.com/sites/default/files/news/water-quality/2010/05/jt-cec-panel-comment-
letter-final.pdf
Compilation of Water Quality Goals
This is a message from the State Water Resources Control Board.
“The Water Quality Goals database has just been updated. This searchable on-line database
contains an extensive compendium of numerical water quality limits from the literature for over
860 chemical constituents and water quality parameters. Included are:
-- California and Federal Drinking Water Standards (MCLs)
-- California Public Health Goals (PHGs)
-- California State Notification Levels for drinking water
-- Health Advisories, Water Quality Advisories, and Drinking Water Advisories
-- Suggested No-Adverse-Response Levels (SNARLs)
-- Cancer Risk Estimates
-- Health-based criteria from USEPA's Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS)
-- Proposition 65 Safe Harbor Levels
-- California Toxics Rule Criteria to protect human health and aquatic life
-- California Ocean Plan Water Quality Objectives
-- USEPA Recommended Criteria to protect human health and aquatic life
-- Agricultural use protective limits
-- Taste and odor based criteria
These limits may be used to assess whether beneficial uses of surface water or groundwater are
likely to be impaired or threatened.
The Water Quality Goals database is available on the Water Board's website at
http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/water_issues/programs/water_quality_goals/. Search for
chemical constituents and water quality parameters by name, portion of a name, abbreviation, or
Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) Registry Number. Instructions for using the database are
available at
http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/water_issues/programs/water_quality_goals/how_to_use_wqgoal
s.shtml.
The contents of the database may be download in tab-text format for upload to your favorite
database program. And changes in the database from previous versions are available for
viewing.
Your comments and questions are welcome. The Water Quality Goals is compiled by,
Jon B. Marshack, D.Env.,Staff Environmental Scientist, Office of Information Management &
Analysis, State Water Resources Control Board, 1001 I Street, 15th Floor, 41F
P.O. Box 100, Sacramento, CA 95812-0100
phone: (916) 341-5514, mobile: (916) 201-0266, fax: (916) 341-5463
email: [email protected]
Contact Dr. Marshack to be added to the email list to receive future announcement of updates.
OEHHA Draft Public Health Goal for Trihalomethanes in Drinking Water
The Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, California Environmental Protection
Agency September 2010 has released, for public comments and review, a draft “Public Health
Goal for Trihalomethanes in Drinking Water.” The OEHHA announcement states,
“SUMMARY
This document provides a health risk assessment for the four major trihalomethanes (THMs)
found in drinking water as a consequence of the chlorination disinfection process, and a
proposed Public Health Goal (PHG) for the sum of these, as a Total THM (TTHM) approach.
The four THMs are chloroform (CHCl3), bromoform (CHBr3), bromodichloromethane
(CHBrCl2, or BDCM), and dibromochloromethane (CHBr2Cl, or DBCM). The estimated
health-protective concentration for chloroform is 0.001 milligram per liter (mg/L) or 1
microgram per liter (μg/L) or 1 part per billion (ppb); for bromoform 5 μg/L; for BDCM 0.4
μg/L; and for DBCM 0.7 μg/L. A proposed PHG of 0.8 μg/L or ppb for TTHMs in drinking
water is calculated based on the mean concentrations of each of the four chemicals in California
drinking water. The health-protective values for the individual THMs are based on
carcinogenicity, associated with a negligible lifetime theoretical cancer risk of one in a million
(10-6). Tumors are induced at a number of sites including liver, kidney, and large intestine by
each of the THMs in several rodent studies.” Information on this PHG for THMs is at,
http://www.oehha.org/water/phg/thmdraft061909.html
OEHHA Extends Comment Period for Public Health Goals for Hexavalent Chromium
Comment period for the “Draft Technical Support Document on Proposed Public Health Goal
for Hexavalent Chromium in Drinking Water [09/25/09]” has been extended to November 2,
2010. The OEHHA announcement states:
“The Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) within the California
Environmental Protection Agency is hereby announcing a two-week extension of the public
comment period on the draft technical support document for the proposed Public Health Goal
(PHG) for hexavalent chromium in drinking water. Written comments must now be received at
the OEHHA address below by 5:00 p.m. on November 2, 2009 to be considered during this
document revision period.” Information on the extension and the original proposed PHG is
available at http://oehha.ca.gov/water/phg/extend092509.html
http://oehha.ca.gov/water/phg/chr6draft082009.html

OEHHA Draft Selenium Public Health in Drinking Water
Announcement of First Public Comment Period and Workshop Draft Technical Support:
“The Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) proposes a public health
goal (PHG) of 30 micrograms per liter [μg/L or parts per billion (ppb)] for water-soluble and
bioavailable selenium compounds in drinking water. The no observed adverse effect level
(NOAEL) is 0.015 milligrams per kilogram of body weight/day (mg/kg-day) for hair loss and nail
damage observed in a human population. The evaluation is focused on water-soluble and
bioavailable selenium because this is the form of selenium most commonly found in drinking
water.” The document on the Proposed Public Health Goal for Selenium in Drinking Water
available at
http://oehha.ca.gov/water/phg/pdf/SeleniumPHG040210.pdf

USGS Releases Study of Pharmaceuticals in Wastewater
According to Kristina Twigg, Contributing Editor American Water Works Associate Streamlines
Posted: 06/29/2010:
“Contributions from pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities may be responsible for 10- to
1,000-fold increases in wastewater effluent pharmaceutical concentrations, according to a new
study by the US Geological Survey.
This is the first study in the US to identify pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities as a
significant source of pharmaceuticals to the environment," said Matthew Larsen, USGS
associate director for water.
Over the last decade, awareness and concern about pharmaceuticals in the water have grown.
They are difficult to remove from the wastewater stream because medicines come in variety of
chemical structures, each requiring different treatment methods.
Furthermore, wastewater treatment plants receive pharmaceutical loads from many sources —
hospitals, veterinary clinics, households and even pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities.
These facilities are required by the US Environmental Protection Agency manufacturing effluent
discharge and emission regulations to pre-treat their effluent before sending it to public utilities.
In addition, the high cost of active pharmaceutical ingredients should discourage waste.
Yet, the USGS study reveals that these facilities make previously underestimated contributions to
the pharmaceutical load of wastewater treatment plants.
The five-year study compared two New York treatment plants that receive more than 20 percent
of their wastewater from pharmaceutical formulation facilities with one that receives none.
USGS researchers tested wastewater outflow for commonly detected pharmaceuticals including
muscle relaxers, opiod pain relievers and anti-anxiety medication.
They also compared these results to a national survey of 23 treatment plants that do not receive
effluent from pharmaceutical formulation facilities, although half of these plants do receive
hospital wastewater.
Even so, the maximum drug concentration of all 24 treatment plants lacking pharmaceutical
manufacturing effluent was generally less than one ppb (1 microgram/L), which is the equivalent
of one drop of water in an Olympic-sized swimming pool.
However, samples from the two treatment plants receiving pharmaceutical effluent revealed a
complex mix of medications. Some samples exposed pharmaceutical concentrations that were 10
times to 1,000 times higher than average. For example, researchers found concentrations of
metaxalone, a muscle relaxer, at 3,800 ppb (3,800 micrograms/L) and oxycodone, an opiod pain
reliever, at 1,700 ppb (1,700 micrograms/L).
Research about both the human and animal health effects of low level pharmaceutical exposure
is ongoing. However, higher levels of pharmaceuticals introduced by manufacturing facilities
may present risks previously unaccounted for by current toxicological assessments.
This study and additional information about water quality can be found online.” at
Manufacturing Facilities Release Pharmaceuticals to the Environment
http://www.usgs.gov/newsroom/article.asp?ID=2477

In-Stream Flow Workshop
The University of California, Davis Center for Aquatic Biology and Aquaculture (UCD-CEC)
Instream Flow Assessment Program has announced the upcoming “Instream Flow Assessment
Workshop” to be held on Tuesday, December 7, 2010 at the UC Davis Buehler Alumni and
Visitor Center from 10 AM to 4 PM. Registration is due on or before October 29th, 2010. A
registration form and detailed information about the Workshop can be downloaded from:
http://animalscience.ucdavis.edu/Instream/workshop.htm
The contact for the workshop is: Paciencia (Cincin) Young, Ph. D. Administrative Officer,
Instream Flow Assessment Program, Center for Aquatic Biology and Aquaculture, University of
California, 1 Shields Avenue Davis, CA 95616 Phone (530)752-9546
http://animalscience.ucdavis.edu/Instream/main.htm
1,4-Dioxane and Other Solvent Stabilizers
A new book is available entitled, “Environmental Investigation and Remediation: 1,4-Dioxane
and Other Solvent Stabilizers,” by Thomas K. G. Mohr, P.G., E.G., H.G. with chapters by
William H. DiGuiseppi, P.G., and Julie A. Stickney, Ph.D., DABT.
Preview the book at: http://www.the14dioxanebook.com
1,4 dioxane is a common groundwater pollutant at hazardous chemical sites that, until recently,
was overlooked in monitoring groundwater for potentially hazardous chemicals. The Agency for
Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) discusses the occurrence and health threat of
this chemical at http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxfaqs/tf.asp?id=954&tid=199
There, ATSDR stated, “1,4-Dioxane is a clear liquid that easily dissolves in water. It is used
primarily as a solvent in the manufacture of chemicals and as a laboratory reagent; 1,4-dioxane
also has various other uses that take advantage of its solvent properties. 1,4-Dioxane is a trace
contaminant of some chemicals used in cosmetics, detergents, and shampoos. However,
manufacturers now reduce 1,4-dioxane from these chemicals to low levels before these
chemicals are made into products used in the home.”

Water Quality Standards Academy for December 13 -17 in Washington, DC (Crystal City)
The US EPA is offering its Water Quality Basics Course – “Water Quality Standards Academy”
– December 13-17, 2010. According to its announcement, “The ‘Water Quality Standards
Academy’ is a basic, introductory course designed for those with fewer than six months of
experience with water quality standards. This is a comprehensive and highly structured course that introduces participants to all aspects of the water quality standards program, including the interpretation and application of the water quality standards regulation: water body designated uses, the development of water quality criteria (including human health, aquatic life, nutrient and biological), antidegradation policies, implementation, State/Tribal standards adoption and EPA review.” For information about this course and application, go to http://www.glec-online.com/form.htm

Source: http://www.gfredlee.com/Newsletter/swnewsV13N4.pdf