CLEANUP PLAN ORDERED CHROMIUM 6 WELL SHUTDOWN CONSIDERED.Byline: Troy Anderson Staff Writer LOS ANGELES Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. - The Board of Supervisors on Tuesday ordered county public works officials to study the effects of shutting down or limiting use of 30 Antelope Valley wells that are contaminated contaminated, v 1. made radioactive by the addition of small quantities of radioactive material. 2. made contaminated by adding infective or radiographic materials. 3. an infective surface or object. with chromium 6. The supervisors also instructed the department to prepare a plan to remove carcinogens Carcinogens Substances in the environment that cause cancer, presumably by inducing mutations, with prolonged exposure. Mentioned in: Colon Cancer, Rectal Cancer and other impurities from the water in the wells, which are strung across the Antelope Valley from Lancaster to Lake Los Angeles and Littlerock. ``The Los Angeles County Environmental Toxicology Bureau's study is a wake-up call for an aggressive action plan to protect our water supply,'' Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich Michael Dennis Antonovich (born 1939 in Los Angeles, California) is a member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors representing the Fifth District, which covers northern Los Angeles County, the Antelope, Santa Clarita, Pasadena, and parts of the San Fernando and San said. The county's Environmental Toxicology Bureau tested 44 wells operated by the county waterworks waterworks: see water supply. district from Sylmar to Lake Los Angeles, and found 32 wells with levels of chromium 6 ranging from 2.8 to 17.6 parts per billion. Thirty of the wells were in the Antelope Valley, and two in Kagel Canyon outside Sylmar. While federal and state agencies have permitted higher levels of chromium 6, the state Office of Environmental Health Hazards There are numerous health hazards that can affect people in their natural environment. Examples of environmental health hazards are :
Los Angeles County and local water officials say they don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. how the substance got into Antelope Valley well water. Chromium is used in industry, and may also occur naturally in some areas, they said. County health officials said chromium 6 is a carcinogen carcinogen: see cancer. carcinogen Agent that can cause cancer. Exposure to one or more carcinogens, including certain chemicals, radiation, and certain viruses, can initiate cancer under conditions not completely understood. , but no one has established at what level contamination poses a danger. ``It's not fair to let the people drink out of there. Nobody knows at what level chromium 6 causes cancer,'' Environmental Toxicology Bureau Deputy Director Wasfy Shindy shin·dy n. pl. shin·dies 1. A commotion; an uproar. Also called shindig. 2. See shindig. [Perhaps alteration of shinny1. said. Department of Public Works spokeswoman Jean Granucci said the contaminated wells provide the sole source of water only for two tiny parts of far northeastern Lancaster - totaling only about 50 residents - near 90th Street East and Avenue J and near 25th Street East and Avenue F. The rest of the thousands of county waterworks customers in Lancaster and other parts of the Antelope Valley are connected to pipeline systems in which well water is blended with water received from other sources, including the Antelope Valley-East Kern Water Agency, which draws from the California Aqueduct. Granucci said the department will look at all the options before issuing its report on whether to limit or shut down wells. ``There is no way to predict the financial impact at this point,'' she said. ``At this point, we'll consider all options and do a thorough study before making any recommendations.'' Wells and chromium 6 levels found include: LANCASTER: 419 W. Avenue J, 12.8 ppb; 44349 Beech Ave., 12.4 ppb; three wells at 44205 15th St. W, 16.5 ppb, 12.6 ppb and 15.6 ppb; two wells at 42861 5th St. W., 9.9 ppb and 10 ppb; two wells at 741 W. Avenue M, 9.4 ppb and 8.7 ppb; 3310 W. Ave. K, 12.5 ppb; 4555 W. Ave. J, 4.9 ppb; 1701 W. Ave. H-6, 17.8 ppb; 45938 15th St. W., 15.2 ppb; 45712 Division St., 10.7 ppb; 1284 W. Ave. H, 13.7 ppb; 2542 E. Ave. E-12, 2.8 ppb; 8820 E. Nugent St., 4.4 ppb; two wells at 43205 Division St., 9.8 ppb and 9.7 ppb; two wells at 44552 27th St. E., 12 ppb and 9 ppb; two wells at 3549 E. Ave. J-8, 10.8 ppb and 9.5 ppb; and 45548 Division St., 15.8 ppb. LAKE LOS ANGELES: Avenue M-4 at 170th Street East, 13.4 ppb; 41000 172th St. E., 13.7 ppb; 40590 177th St. E., 14 ppb. LITTLEROCK: 10555 E. Ave. T, 4.97 ppb; 9551 E. Ave. U, 4.6 ppb; 8955 E. Ave. U, 3.37 ppb. KAGEL CANYON: 12627 N. Kagel Canyon Road,3.5 ppb; and Angeles National Forest The Angeles National Forest (ANF) was established by executive order on December 20, 1892 as the San Gabriel Timberland Reserve. It covers over 2,600 km² (650,000 acres) and is located in the San Gabriel Mountains of Los Angeles County, just north of the metropolitan area of Los , Kagel Canyon, 5.57 ppb. Staff writer Charles F. Bostwick contributed to this report. |
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