' -4?
Journal of Environmental Management (1999) 56, 79—95
Article No. jema.1999.0274, available online at httpvywww.idealibrary.com on
Issues in managing the risks
associated with perchlorate in
drinking water1
E. T. Urbansky* and M. R. Schock
Perchlorate (CIO4~) contamination of ground and surface waters has placed drinking water supplies at risk
in communities throughout the US, especially in the West. Several major assessment studies of that risk in
terms of health and environmental impact are expected to be released by the US Environmental Protection
Agency in early 1999, and preparations for how best to manage and minimize that risk are underway.
Perchlorate salts are used in rocket and missile propulsion; therefore, it is believed that the pollution is
derived primarily from defense and supporting industry. Due to the perchlorate anion's fundamental physical
and chemical nature, the contamination is difficult to treat or remediate. The current work describes the
evolution of the unique team-based governmental response to the problem and the rapidity of its development.
Technologies under consideration that may prove feasible for treating contaminated water supplies are
discussed and evaluated. The impact of these treatment technologies on other regulatory compliance
matters and limitations of space, cost, and other resources are considered. Practical guidelines for
approaching the problem are outlined, and current research needs are identified.
Keywords: perchlorate, risk management, risk assessment, drinking water, potable water,
biodegradation, electroreduction, anion exchange, electrodialysis, membrane filtration, water
treatment, regulatory impact, infrastructure, water utility.
Introduction
At least 11 American states have sites where
perchlorate-contaminated effluents have
been discharged into sewage streams or nat-
ural waters and where aquifers or waterways
may be contaminated with this species. The
perchlorate ion (C1O4~, Figure 1) is likely to
be found in locations where perchlorate salts
have ever been manufactured or used. Per-
chlorate salts are used as energetics boosters
or solid oxidants in rockets and missiles; con-
sequently, the source of the pollution is tied
largely to the military, space program and
supporting industries. The US Air Force
(USAF), National Aeronautics and Space Ad-
ministration (NASA), and a host of defense
lrThis work was completed by US Government em-
ployees acting in their official capacities. As such, it
is in the public domain and not subject to copyright
restrictions.
contractors and perchlorate salt man-
ufacturers2 are potentially responsible for the
release and site clean up (Fields, 1998). It is
undeniable that an important way of dealing
with such water pollution is to prevent it in
the first place by keeping the water from
contacting polluted soil or industrial waste,
as might be accomplished with impermeable
barriers, for instance. While such efforts must
be part of overall risk management, this
paper will focus on issues dealing with water
that has already been contaminated with per-
chlorate and making that water safe for con-
sumption, primarily by various treatment
processes.
We explore a variety of issues that must
be faced by anyone who drinks, treats, uses
or regulates drinking water. In addition, we
address regulatory compliance issues and the
2 The industrial potentially responsible parties include
Aerojet, Alliant Techsystems, American Pacific/Western
Electrochemical Company, Atlantic Research Cor-
poration, Kerr-McGee Chemical Corporation, Lockheed
Martin, Thiokol Propulsion Group and United Tech-
nologies Chemical Systems (Fields, 1998).
* Corresponding author
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA), Office of
Research and
Development, National
Risk Management
Research Laboratory,
Water Supply and Water
Resources Division,
Treatment Technology
Evaluation Branch,
Cincinnati, Ohio 45268,
USA
Received 10 November
1998; accepted 5 March
1999
0301-4797/99/060079+17 $30.00
-------
80 E. T. Urbansky and M. R. Schock
Figure 1. Structure of the perchlorate ion. This
drawing of a space-filling model shows the
tetrahedral orientation of the four oxygen atoms
around the central chlorine(VII). The oxygen atoms
sterically block reductant molecules from direct
attack at the chlorine.
difficulties in making technologies work to-
gether so that one does not adversely affect
another. Risk management for potable water
(like any other risk) is dependent upon avail-
able resources: space, time, money. How much
should a glass of water cost? How pure must
it be? We discuss the issues for consumers,
water utilities and regulatory agencies as
well as some guidelines we hope will prove
useful in resolving them. We offer general
information on individual treatment strat-
egies, including applicability, advantages and
disadvantages—framed in terms of regu-
latory and other restrictions. Risk man-
agement for drinking water has traditionally
focused on treatment of contaminated water;
however, we suggest that there are a number
of ways of managing risk that, taken together,
can meet the ultimate goal of protecting pub-
lic health.
Much of the recent federally funded re-
search has focused on the toxicological and
ecological impact of perchlorate contam-
ination and therefore is directed towards
assessing risk, rather than managing it. The
primary target organ appears to be the thy-
roid gland, although other effects are known
(Urbansky, 1998; Von Burg, 1995, and ref-
erences therein). Until a final reference dose
(RfD) or a no observable adverse effects level
(NOAEL) is established by the US En-
vironmental Protection Agency (EPA) Na-
tional Center for Environmental Assessment
(NCSA), risk management must aim for a
moving target. Risk management has focused
on technologies that can lower perchlorate
concentrations to those levels which are un-
detectable by ion chromatography, i.e. below
5 ng ml"1 (jag I"1). Regardless of what NOAEL
is set and whether perchlorate is ever
regulated,3 water utilities in California and
Nevada have expressed interest in lower-
ing perchlorate to undetectable levels. In
addition, a number of consumer interest,
conservationist and environmentalist organ-
izations advocate setting a level of zero as
the goal for treated potable water. This com-
bined effort is driving the development of
technologies that will lower perchlorate con-
centrations to <5 ng ml"1 while ensuring that
total water quality is not compromised.
Evolution of governmental
response
When the analytical capabilities of ion
chromatography (1C) methods had improved
sufficiently that aqueous solution con-
centrations as low as 5 ng ml"1 could be meas:
ured reliably, studies by the industry and
California agencies showed a number of con-
taminated aquifers, wells and surface wa-
terways. The EPA Region 9 office4 was already
aware of some of these sites on account of
other contaminants, such as volatile organic
compounds. Shortly thereafter, the EPA Na-
tional Exposure Research Laboratory became
involved in a search for confirmatory tech-
niques and methods of chemical analysis.
At the same time, the USAF and Air Force
Research Laboratories were refining 1C work
and considering what studies might be neces-
sary.
In the meantime, a perchlorate issue group
was assembled by local utilities6 to examine
the problem. It issued a report proposing
certain strategies and identifying several
areas of research need, based on information
available at the time. Subsequently, Congress
appropriated $2 million to one of these util-
ities (E VWD) to begin to carry out appropriate
3 The EPA Office of Water added perchlorate to the
Contaminant Candidate List (CCL) as of 2 March 1998;
however, it is unknown whether this will lead to the
promulgation of a maximum contaminant level (MCL)
for potable water (US EPA, 1998a).
4 Region 9 includes the states of California, Nevada,
Arizona and Hawaii and the protectorates of American
Samoa and Guam.
5 The utilities were the East Valley Water District,
Main San Gabriel Watermaster, Metropolitan Water Dis-
trict of Southern California, San Bernardino Valley Mu-
nicipal Water District and Southern Nevada Water
Authority.
-------
Perchlorate risk management issues 81
studies.6 As the health effects and eco-
toxicology of perchlorate had been only min-
imally explored, a group of scientists was
convened to propose and rank the studies
necessary to accurately assess the risks as-
sociated with perchlorate in the environment.
At present, eight separate investigations
have been conducted (funded by the USAF
and guided by NCEA), and results are an-
ticipated to be released in early 1999 after
completion of the external peer review
(Fields, 1998; US EPA, 1998a). Since fall
1997, there has been a sense of urgency as-
sociated with this process, and the timeframe
for the risk assessment has been un-
precedented for the EPA (Farland, 1998).
A case study in cooperation
There are two particularly unique qualities
to the process that has followed the discovery
of this pollutant. First and foremost has been
the team approach. There has been a strongly
interactive, cooperative spirit among the
agencies and employees involved. The for-
mation of the Interagency Perchlorate Steer-
ing Committee (IPSC) with representatives
from throughout the federal government (see
Table 1) is an unprecedented development in
the history of dealing with water pollution.
Although statutory obligations require that
agencies maintain budgetary and adminis-
trative control over their respective domains,
the interaction has proved invaluable in en-
suring the rapid dissemination of information
and the up-front consideration of alternate
(and sometimes conflicting) requirements. By
involving interested parties from the start, it
has ensured that all concerns and obligations
have been met, and it has minimized last
minute objections to recommendations and
conclusions. It is worth pointing out that
the formalization of the IPSC was a gradual
evolution as more agencies became involved
and roles took shape; it was not a directive
from senior management. Initially, it began
as a combined effort among the staffs of vari-
ous agencies to find out how much was known,
6 The East Valley Water District (EVWD) has con-
tracted with the American Water Works Association
Research Foundation (AWWARF) to carry out this
research. Projects can he found at the AWWARF
internet website: http://www.awwarf.corn/newprojects/
perchlor.html
who was doing what, and what should be
done next. By early 1998, it had become clear
that there was in fact a fairly well-defined
team with similar goals and a commitment
to accomplishing them.
The IPSC has thus far proven itself to be
a model for attacking future pollution prob-
lems. Interagency Perchlorate Steering Com-
mittee meetings have remained open; PRPs,
government and university researchers, pri-
vate organizations, industry and corporate
representatives, and state and local agencies
have all been free to address the full com-
mittee or to inquire about the status of pro-
jects or action items. Professionals from a
wide variety of backgrounds and expertise
were brought in at the beginning, including
risk management (water treatment and re-
mediation) and exposure (chemical analysis
and occurrence) among others. This has
helped to balance the vision as opposed to
the more traditional linear approach in terms
of completing detailed risk assessment
(health effects), then developing analytical
methods and determining occurrence, and
finally managing risks.
The second unique quality has been the ex-
tremely rapid progression of events. This has
been made possible only through concurrent
work in several fields. Of course, this could not
have been done without the integrated ap-
proach and inclusion of so many people up
front. Since the discovery of the expanding
low-level perchlorate plumes in late 1996, a
network of perchlorate manufacturers, con-
sumers, researchers and regulators has been
established. The risk assessment is nearly
complete. There is a large body of analytical
chemistry data to draw on, and inter-
laboratory method validation is well on its
way. Sites likely to be contaminated have been
identified, and there is a fairly comprehensive
body of data on occurrence throughout the
nation. Initial strategies for risk management
have been identified, and pilot scale tests are
underway for some technologies. As informa-
tion has been shared from the start, the regu-
latory community is prepared to receive the
risk assessment and is familiar with tech-
nologies available for risk management. Of
course, refinement and eventual imple-
mentation of risk management technologies
for water treatment and site remediation will
require the risk assessment results expected
in early 1999.
-------
82 E. T. Urbansky and M. R. Schock
Table 1. Principal agencies involved in cooperative planning and discussion over how to handle perchlorate
pollution0
US military and space programs
US Air Force (USAF) and Air Force Research Laboratories (AFRL)
US Army
US Navy
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
IS Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Research and Development (ORD)
National Center for Environmental Assessment (NCEA)
National Risk Management Research Laboratory (NRMRL)
National Exposure Research Laboratory (NERL)
National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory (NHEERL)
Region 6 office6
Region 9 office0
Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response (OSWER)
Office of Emergency and Remedial Response (OERR)
Office of Water (OW)
Office of Science Policy (OSP)
undry US federal research agencies
National Institute of Environmental and Health Sciences (NIEHS)
Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL)
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL)
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR)
National Institute for Environmental and Health Sciences (NIEHS)
US Geological Survey (USGS)
tate agencies
Utah Department of Environmental Quality
Utah Department of Health Laboratories
Nevada Division of Environmental Protection
California Department of Health Services
Arizona Department of Environmental Quality
ocal authorities
East Valley Water District
Main San Gabriel Watermaster
Metropolitan Water District of Southern California
San Bernardino Valley Municipal Water District
Southern Nevada Water Authority
Las Vegas Valley Water District
• Many agencies have been involved along the way, including state and county health or environmental protection
departments or public utilities; however, the agencies listed here have been responsible for and continue to guide this
effort. Some of the agencies listed in this table have been involved primarily in technical or scientific consulting roles.
Note that the IPSC is comprised only of US federal agencies.
6 Region 6 includes the states of Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas.
c See footnote 4.
Physical and chemical properties of
perchlorate
The chemistry of perchlorate was reviewed
in-depth in a previous paper (Urbansky,
1998). Nevertheless, several key points neces-
sary for understanding risk management
strategies bear repeating here. The per-
chlorate ion (C1O4~) is the most oxidized form
of chlorine that exists in water. It is a strong
oxidizing agent (oxidation state +7). Other
Cl711 compounds, namely, C1F7 and C12O7, are
both hydrolyzed to perchlorate. When re-
duced to chloride in acidic solution it has a
standard reduction potential of 1-29 V (Bard
et al, 1985; Emsley, 1989), making it a
stronger oxidant than oxygen, but not so
strong as dichromate:
C1O4- + 8e- + 8H+ -+Cl- +4H2O E° = 1-29V
(1)
When dilute (<10% w/w) or in weakly acidic
to basic (pH> 1) aqueous solution, perchlorate
-------
Perchlorate risk management issues 83
is so non-labile as an oxidizing agent—, i.e., it
reacts so slowly—with most reducing agents
that no reaction is observable (Schilt, 1979).
Only extremely reactive air-sensitive trans-
ition metal species show any observable redox
reaction, making perchlorate famous for its
lack of lability (Urbansky, 1998). This be-
havior results from the high strength of the
chlorine-oxygen bonds and the requirement
that reduction must proceed initially by oxy-
gen atom abstraction rather than a direct
involvement of the central chlorine atom.
This kinetic behavior is illustrated in Figure
2. The abscissa marks the progression of a
reaction between a perchlorate ion and a
general reducing agent R, capable of ac-
cepting an oxygen atom. The conversion to
chlorate shown in Equation (2) is generally
regarded as the first step in perchlorate re-
duction:
(2)
The reaction is thermodynamically favored
as shown by AE<0, i.e. the products have
lower internal energy than the reactants.
Nonetheless, the reaction rate is controlled
by the kinetic barrier of the high activation
energy Ea of the transition state, the location
of which is marked by the diesis (f). Sub-
sequent steps in the process are much less
kinetically hindered.
Reaction progress
Figure 2. Energy profile for the rate-limiting step
in perchlorate reduction [Equation (2)], abstraction
of the first oxygen atom. The kinetic barrier is the
result of the high activation energy, Ea, despite the
fact that the reaction is driven forwards by the
release of energy, i.e., AE<0.
Available treatment
technologies
Ideally, a technology should be able to handle
concentrations ranging from ^Sngml"1
(Ugl-1) all the way to ~10mgml-1 (gT1).
Most of the affected regions have perchlorate
concentrations below 0-5 nig ml"1; however,
concentrations as high as S-Tmgml"1 have
been encountered. The Colorado River and
several California wells show concentrations
in the range of 8-30 ng ml"1 (ng I"1). Current
technologies can be divided into two primary
categories: destruction and removal. De-
struction is generally regarded as a preferable
process because it eliminates the need for
subsequent disposal of removed material,
which is regarded as a hazard in this case.
Each of the techniques is described briefly,
and the strengths and weaknesses of these
technologies are summarized in Table 2.
Regulatory and other impacts some of these
techniques will be addressed or expanded
upon in a later section.
Chemically destructive processes
As perchlorate does not exhibit its oxidizing
properties under the conditions found in con-
taminated raw and treated waters, it cannot
be reduced with common agents, such as
thiosulfate (S2O32-), sulfite (SO32-) or ele-
mental metals (e.g. Fe, Zn, Cu). To be a can-
didate for consideration in drinking water
treatment, a technique must demonstrate
that it can overcome the high activation en-
ergy associated with perchlorate reduction.
The speed of the rate limiting step [such as
that shown in Equation (2)] must be in-
creased.
Biological reduction
At the present time, biological reduction ap-
pears to hold the most promise for large-
scale treatment of perchlorate-laden waters.
Several genera of micro-organisms are cap-
able of using perchlorate as an oxidant (elec-
tron acceptor) for metabolism (Logan, 1998;
Urbansky, 1998). It is generally accepted that
-------
84 E. T. Urbansky and M. R. Schock
Table 2. Pros and cons of currently available drinking water treatment technologies
Technique Pros Cons
Biological reduction
Electroreduction
Anion exchange
Membrane filtration
Electrodialysis
Selective
Fairly rugged
Fairly fast
Other contaminants also
destroyed
Low operating cost
No waste products
Low maintenance
Easily implemented
Moderate maintenance
Fairly inexpensive
Existing technology
Existing technology
Highly effective
Fast
Ideal for point-of-use
Existing technology
Highly effective
Fast
Ideal for point-of-use
Unknown pathogenesis
Food source needed
O2 competition
Unknown byproducts
Moderate/high monitoring and maintenance
Insufficiently developed at this time
Difficult to implement in existing facilities
with high output
Electricity consumption/high operating cost
Worker safety
Difficult to implement in existing facilities
with high output
Insufficiently developed at this time
Regeneration/down time
Hard to make selective
Waste disposal (from regeneration)
Maintenance
Membrane corruption
Concentrate disposal
Not selective
Electricity consumption/moderate operating
cost
Membrane corruption
Concentrate disposal
Not very selective at this time
these microbes possess a reductase (an en-
zyme) that allows them to lower the ac-
tivation energy of perchlorate reduction and
thereby make use of the energy for cellular
respiration. In addition, at least some strains
make use of a chlorite (C1O2~) dismutase,
which allows direct conversion of chlorite to
chloride and water, without formation of cyto-
toxic hypochlorous acid (HOC1).
Unfortunately, some of these organisms
cause disease and/or prefer oxygen. When
incoming water contains a significant con-
centration of dissolved oxygen, a large
amount of reductant (food) may be consumed
by the organisms without any reduction of
perchlorate. Any organisms known or found
to be pathogenic are likely to be excluded
for obvious reasons. Even if the water is
subsequently subjected to disinfection, it
seems ill-advised to intentionally introduce a
pathogenic organism. The bacterial genera
that are the likely candidates remain un-
studied at this time, but all are anticipated
to be non-pathogenic. Harding Lawson As-
sociates, an engineering firm operating in
Region 9, has developed bioreactors based on
organisms found in sludges (Catts, 1998). The
US Air Force has developed a bioreactor,
isolated the active microbe and identified it as
the bacterium Wolinella succinogenes HAP-
1 (Wallace et al, 1996). The fluidized bed
biological reactor (FBBR) is a popular ap-
paratus for biodegradative treatment. The
USAF process is geared towards wastewater
treatment; nonetheless, there is reason to
believe it is applicable to potable water and
some research is directed along these lines.
Both the USAF and Harding Lawson reactors
were able to reduce effluent perchlorate con-
centrations to below 5 ng ml"1. Shown in Fig-
ure 3, the usually funnel-shaped FBBR
makes use of an inert support medium (e.g.
granular carbon) on which microbiota are
grown. The FBBR's shape results in high
influent water velocity, so that the water
suspends the medium. As the FBBR widens
towards the top, the water velocity is in-
sufficient to suspend the medium, which
settles out. This eliminates the need for a
filter to retain the bioactive medium. Smith
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Perchlorate risk management issues 85
QP
Figure 3. Fluidized bed biological reactor (FBBR).
Untreated water enters the bottom with high velocity,
which allows it to support the bed of supporting
medium (which the microbial population grows on).
Due to the shape of the FBBR, the water loses
velocity with altitude, and the medium settles out
before the effluent is discharged. Although not
shown in the diagram, FBBRs are often constructed
with a recycle loop that increases the residence time
of the water.
and Stewart (1998) constructed an FBBR
using Celite® as the support; they inoculated
their reactor with sludge from an anerobic
municipal waste digester and fed the mi-
crobes cheese whey. Their FBBR reduced per-
chlorate concentrations from l-Sngml"1 in
the influent to rcSngml"1 in the effluent.
Electrochemical reduction
It is possible to reduce perchlorate to chloride
using an electric current applied directly to
the water by a cathode at high potential. A
number of different materials have been used
as cathodes, including platinum, tungsten
carbide, ruthenium, titanium, aluminum and
carbon doped with chromium(III) oxide or
aluminum oxide (Urbansky, 1998). There are
several problems with electroreduction, most
notably, the time required to get ions to the
electrode surface from the bulk water as well
as the time required for them to associate
with the surface. Electrode corrosion, surface
passivation and natural organic matter
(NOM) adsorption to the surface present tech-
nological difficulties. Skillful design could
likely overcome at least some these, however.
While this technology is well-established for
such industrial processes as metal electro-
plating or brine electrolysis, it has not yet
been implemented in the potable water
industry, probably because there has never
been any real need. Figure 4 shows the ex-
pected oxidation and reduction half-reactions
for a simple electrolytic cell. An actual elec-
trolytic cell used for this process would more
reasonably be modeled on a diaphragm cell
used for brine electrolysis.
Physical removal
Physical removal processes work exactly as
the name suggests; they physically separate
the perchlorate ion from the drinking water.
As these techniques do not destroy the per-
chlorate, they create a subsequent need for
disposal of both the perchlorate and any
waste products of the process. In addition,
all of these techniques currently suffer from a
lack of selectivity. Along with the perchlorate,
they tend to remove or replace unacceptably
large quantities of beneficial dissolved salts
or their component parts. Deionized water
presents a corrosion and disinfection problem
for distribution systems, resulting in aes-
thetic degradation of the water, and po-
tentially detrimental health effects by
increased mobilization of toxic trace metals
(e.g. lead). Although these technologies are
all well-established, they will be difficult to
use in large systems, mainly because of the
Cathode ,
Reduction
C1O4" + 8e~ + 8H+ -»•
Cr + 4H20
!*
;;*
1 Anode
•'£•
.-, ,:{•*'
/*.
r;
Oxidation
(2H20-^02
-j'?
IN
*«
4-4
- 4H+) x 2
Figure 4. Simple electrolytic cell of the reduction of perchlorate. Electrons are applied direct y to the
perchlorate at the cathode, which is maintained at high electrical potential (voltage) The reduction hal-
reaction must be accompanied by an oxidation half-reaction, and the electrolysis of water is the most likely
to occur.
-------
86 E. T. Urbansky and M. R. Schock
Anion exchange resin (stationary phase)
'
CIO,
A perchlorate ion
is adsorbed to the
resin
CIO,
A chloride ion
is released
into the water
Figure 5. Mechanism of anion exchange—chloride
for perchlorate. A chloride ion is released from the
quaternary ammonium moiety of a strong anion
exchange resin, and perchlorate ion takes the place
originally occupied by the chloride in the resin.
low concentration of perchlorate in the source
water and the lack of selectivity. Moreover,
their use is limited even in small water sys-
tems by pre-treatment and post-treatment
factors.
Anion exchange
With this technique, perchlorate is replaced
by an innocuous anion, usually chloride.
Water flows through a resin that contains a
high concentration of this replacement ion.
Due to the relative concentration difference
of the two ions in the resin, the perchlorate
switches places with the other ion, which is
now released into the water (see Figure 5).
Eventually, the resin reaches an equilibrium
concentration where no more perchlorate
can be extracted from the water; at that
point, the resin must be regenerated. The
used regenerant solution contains a high
concentration of perchlorate and must be dis-
posed of properly. While some highly selective
resins have been developed, these are ex-
pensive and not commercially available.
Those resins which are commercially avail-
able at this time are not sufficiently selective
for perchlorate. On account of their relative
concentrations, harmless and even desirable
anions7 can be preferentially replaced over
perchlorate. Consequently, the resin's chlor-
ide supply is rapidly depleted, and the water
H,o
HoO
SO.
Incoming water
Filtered water
Figure 6. Membrane filtration. In reverse osmosis
and nanofiltration, influent water is forced through
a membrane that is impermeable to dissolved salts.
Exclusion is the result of ionic size and charge.
Effluent water is relatively deionized.
may be transformed into one having highly
undesirable chemical characteristics (par-
ticularly corrosiveness), as well as unpleasant
taste. The US Department of Energy has
developed an anion exchange resin and con-
commitant process for rapid removal of per-
technetate (99mTcO4-), a poorly aquated ion
(a category into which perchlorate also fits),
with minimal retention of strongly aquated
ones6 (Brown, 1998). This custom-made trih-
exyl/triethylammonium blend strong anion
exchange resin was found to remove per-
chlorate from groundwater without affecting
other anions (Gu et al, 1999). In this respect,
it overcomes the selectivity problem that
plagues most commercially available resins.
Calgon Carbon Corporation has developed an
anion exchange process that rotates columns
to eliminate downtime and minimize waste
from regeneration (Betts, 1998). Despite the
drawbacks, ion exchange systems are readily
implemented into existing potable water
treatment facilities. If highly selective resins
can be made cheaply on a large scale and
regenerated with minimal effort and cost,
anion exchange may prove to be an attractive
option for drinking water treatment.
7 The list of harmless or beneficial anions that are
found in natural in water sources includes, but is not
limited to, the following: monohydrogen carbonate (bi-
carbonate), HCO3-; carbonate, CO32-; dihydrogen ortho-
phosphate, H2PO4 ; hydrogen ort/zo-phosphate, HPO42~-
and sulfate, SO,2-. All of these are highly aquated, i.e.
strongly associated with water molecules.
Membrane filtration
This includes such techniques as reverse os-
mosis (RO) and nanofiltration. Water is forced
through a semiporous polymer membrane;
meanwhile, dissolved salts are unable to pen-
etrate the membrane (Figure 6). Membrane
permeability towards different anions and
-------
Perchlorate risk management issues 87
+ +— +— •*"
_+
~
Concentrate
Diluate
Concentrate
Figure 7. Electrodialysis. Water flows through
alternate semipermeable membranes (anion-
impermeable unshaded; cation-impermeable,
shaded) while under the influence of an electric field.
Cations migrate down; anions migrate up. Ions
stop migrating when they reach their respective
impermeable membranes. Alternate layers of salty
and deionized water form as the water moves
through the electrodialysis cell. The layers are drawn
off separately, and the diluate is used.
cations can be adjusted in manufacture to
some degree; however, the filtrate (or per-
meate) is nearly always a relatively deionized
water. The concentrate contains all rejected
dissolved matter, including the perchlorate.
Membrane fouling by alkaline earth and
transition metal compounds can present a
problem, depending on their concentrations
in the water. Additionally, high concentra-
tions of NOM and certain microbiota can
irreversibly foul or damage the membrane
material, necessitating complete replace-
ment. Work at the Metropolitan Water Dis-
trict of Southern California (Liang et al,
1998) showed that nanofiltration and RO
membranes were capable of removing 80% or
more of the perchlorate, but it did not meas-
ure the rejection of other dissolved salts.
Electrodialysis
In electrodialysis, water is passed through
channels of alternating membranes per-
meable to either anions or cations, all the
while being exposed to an electric field (see
Figure 7). This produces alternate channels
of nearly deionized water (the diluate or di-
alyzate) and salty water (the concentrate).
The diluate is used, and the concentrate is
discarded.
Work is this arena is ongoing, and any
discussion of the 'current' state of the science
will necessarily be incomplete and somewhat
outdated by the time of publication. Con-
ferences or meetings have been held by the
East Valley Water District, National Ground
Water Association, and American Water
Works Association (Water Quality Technology
Conference). The American Chemical Society
has scheduled a symposium for the August
1999 meeting. Many investigators and agen-
cies are engaged in research and new de-
velopments occur continually. We expect to
see a number of advances regularly reported
at major scientific society meetings over the
course of the next few years.
Regulatory and engineering
constraints
The regulatory balancing act
The drinking water quality regulatory struc-
ture in the United States is organized around
specifying either a permissible level max-
imum as an MCL or a treatment technique
(US EPA, 1994a,b). This approach is similar
to that practiced by many other countries or
international organizations. If the decision is
made to regulate perchlorate in the United
States by the promulgation of an MCL, the
identification of best available technologies
(BATs) may be undertaken, consistent with
the approach of other regulations governing
some specific contaminants (US EPA, 1980).
Historically, these determinations have
focused only on individual contaminants
of interest. While some determination of
treatment cost was included, the costs rarely
adequately reflected pre- and post-treatment
costs to adjust to needs of other regulations
in force, and the specific construction or ad-
aptation needed for each treatment plant.
The new Safe Drinking Water Act Amend-
ments of 1996 (PL. 104-82) sought to balance
the burden of high cost and sophistication of
treatments for smaller water systems (serv-
ing under 10000 persons) with allowances
for the use of variance technologies under
special different approval conditions. These
result when no affordable technology can be
found that will meet an MCL, but a tech-
nology or treatment system can be employed
which will achieve the maximum affordable
reduction given the size of the system and
-------
88 E. T. Urbansky and M. R. Schock
quality of the source water (US EPA, 1997).
The terms of the variance agreement by the
primacy agent (i.e. state or federal gov-
ernment) must assure adequate protection of
human health. This new approach could be
applicable to the problem with regulating
perchlorate.
The treatment technique approach has
been followed in the notable cases of the US
regulations for lead and copper (US EPA,
1991a,b, 1992, 1994b, 1998b,c), and newer
or upcoming regulations covering DBPs and
microbes such as Cryptosporidium. This ap-
proach has generally been selected either
when the reduction of the contaminant to
the human health effects goal may not be
achievable with conscientious application of
the best known process technologies available
to water utilities (e.g. the case with lead
from household plumbing), or when the direct
quantitative measurement of the con-
taminant is not possible at a level assuring
adequate safety (e.g. Cryptosporidium and
some other pathogenic microbes). This could
become a viable approach for perchlorate re-
gulation, and the pros and cons of treatment
technique versus the MCL approach must be
seriously debated.
Whatever the regulatory target for per-
chlorate becomes, the challenge to the drink-
ing water system will be to develop an
integrated treatment process that will result
in successfully meeting all existing state or
federal drinking water quality regulations.
As many other regulations of serious health
consequences will already be in place [e.g.,
lead, copper, disinfection byproducts (DBPs),
microbial contaminants, other inorganics or
synthetic organics], much discretion is lost in
optimizing treatment purely for perchlorate
reduction or removal.
The current schedule for new regulations
in the US is as follows: (1) disinfectants
and disinfection byproducts (D/DBP) rule—
stage 1, November 1998; stage 2, May 2002;
(2) enhanced surface water treatment rule
(ESWTR)—final interim rule, November
1998; final long-term ESWTR, November
2000; (3) groundwater disinfection rule
(GWDR)—final rule, January 2001; (4) ar-
senic—final rule, January 2001; (5) radio-
nuclides other than radon—reproposed rules
for uranium and radium by December
2000.
Producing acceptable drinking water full
scale
The lead and copper rule poses some of the
most severe constraints to practical full-scale
removal of perchlorate. Two of the most read-
ily usable technologies, anion exchange and
membrane filtration, can be expected to pro-
duce water that is corrosive towards plumb-
ing materials. Solubilization of pipe metals
can adversely affect both health and major
distribution system materials such as unlined
cast or ductile iron, and cement-based
materials (AWWARF, 1990,1996). Membrane
permeates are frequently low in pH relative
to that essential for protection against the
release of lead and copper. The aggressive
nature of high concentrations of chloride ion
towards iron and copper, for instance, has
been well-documented by corrosion studies
goingback40 ormore years (AWWARF, 1996).
The excessive removal of bicarbonate would
result in the loss of buffering ability to control
the pH to non-corrosive levels, and would
remove an essential component of many pas-
sivating films on metallic and cementitious
piping materials (AWWARF, 1996), as would
excessive loss of calcium hardness. Attack on
unlined iron pipe, a ubiquitous material in
many American water distribution systems,
can result in the premature loss of dis-
infectant residual, dislodging of existing pipe
scales that might have micro-organisms en-
trained within or adsorbed upon them, and
increases in pH from cement leaching. Thus,
water quality can be degraded by iron cor-
rosion, increased turbidity, poor taste and
reduction in disinfection effectiveness. Cor-
rosion control treatment provides many be-
nefits to distribution system water quality
beyond reduced lead and copper levels
(Schock, 1998). When a water system has
conducted monitoring for lead and copper,
and has optimized treatment based on his-
torical or recently-improved corrosion control,
major changes in water chemistry brought
about by the installation of perchlorate treat-
ment could have serious adverse health or
distribution system water quality impacts.
Not all regulatory interactions are ne-
cessarily negative. Water systems that have
problems with current and future regulated
contaminants such as DBP formation, ar-
senic, nitrate or with the potential for mi-
crobial contamination, may find it necessary
-------
Table 3. Applicability of treatment technologies to different size systems
Large3
Medium"
Smallc
Perchlorate risk management issues 89
Home"
Biodegradation
Electroreduction
Anion exchange
Membrane filtration
Electrodialysis
Combination8
y y
y y
y y
y
y
y
y
y
y
?
a Large refers to systems serving >10000 persons, for example, metropolitan municipal systems.
"Medium refers to systems serving ~ 1000-10000 persons, such as a rural township or county system.
0 Small refers to systems serving a population in the hundreds, such as a village, corporate facility or residential
subdivision.
dHome refers to systems serving under 20 people, including all point-of-use devices.
8 Combination refers to two or more of the other techniques used together; see text for further explanation.
to employ enhanced membrane filtration or
other processes that could also reduce per-
chlorate levels. In these cases, re-optim-
ization of corrosion control for lead and copper
would be necessary in the regulatory frame-
work anyway, and the perchlorate removal
would not be the only factor driving up the
cost and complexity of treatment.
It must be emphasized that the output
capacity of a water purification plant is one
of the most important factors in determining
which techniques are suited for perchlorate
treatment. In addition, physical space and
other resources play an important role in
making this decision. Likewise, influent
water quality also bears on this choice. If the
raw water has an extremely high level of
alkaline earth metal cations (e.g. Ca2+ or
Mg2+), membrane filtration will not be dir-
ectly applicable since fouling will occur. Other
obvious considerations include downtime for
systems requiring regeneration, operational
maintenance, operational staffing, staff cer-
tification, operational cost, electricity con-
sumption, selectivity and speed. We have
attempted to rank these techniques in terms
of applicability to different size systems in
Table 3, which provides a starting point for
evaluating the reasonableness of using any
one technique or combination of techniques
in a given size system.
Caution must also be exercised in the se-
lection of perchlorate removal technologies,
lest the problem merely be shifted from one
environmental 'compartment' to another.
Waste products from removal or destruction
processes may be covered by a variety of
regulations that do not relate to drinking
water quality, and which may not necessarily
be under the economic control or regulatory
attention of the drinking water production
utility. Additional complexity is introduced
when different private companies or public
governmental agencies are responsible for
source water management and production,
drinking water treatment, wastewater treat-
ment and discharge, and the disposal of
process solids materials (such as waste treat-
ment sludges).
In particular, the key drawback of physical
removal is that something must be done with
the removed perchlorate. When these tech-
niques are applied in a home or point-of-use
(POU) membrane filtration or electrodialysis
system, there is little concern as long as
the raw influent water does not exceed the
permitted perchlorate discharge limits. The
filtrate/dialysate and concentrate are es-
sentially recombined in the sewage stream
since nearly all the water that goes into a
house goes down the drain. Accordingly, there
is no net increase in perchlorate con-
centration in the sewage over the raw water.
However, in large or intermediate systems,
the local discharge of concentrate into a sew-
age system could have a disastrous impact
on the local ecology. In rural areas served by
a central water utility, there may not be a
central sewage treatment system, but in-
dividual septic tanks or cesspools instead;
consequently, there would be no recombining
of the concentrate and filtrate streams.
Combining technologies
It is important to point out that the tech-
nologies described above are not necessarily
-------
90 E. T. Urbansky and M. R. Schock
mutually exclusive in application. It is pos-
sible to physically separate perchlorate by
membrane nitration and to subject the con-
centrate to subsequent biodegradation. Or it
is possible to remove perchlorate by anion
exchange and then subject the spent re-
generant to electrochemical reduction. The
decision to combine techniques must be made
after careful consideration of total water qual-
ity management, including the fundamental
characteristics of the influent water. In many
cases, the best approach may be a combina-
tion. This can especially benefit a facility that
has sufficient space to install ion exchange
columns, and who may, for example, hire a
contractor to regenerate them offsite. De-
velopment of an inexpensive, highly selective
anion exchange resin could substantially
alter the applicability and attractiveness of
this technique.
Areas requiring research
While a number of investigators are currently
working on bioreduction, studies are needed
to identify and characterize more of the micro-
organisms that reduce perchlorate so as to
optimize conditions for maximal destruction
while minimizing byproduct formation,
wasteful side-reactions and nutrient con-
sumption. Presumably, several transition
metal complexes act in key roles in the re-
duction process as active sites in reductases
or dismutases. Nevertheless, it is impossible
to know if the raw water provides a sufficient
supply of essential minerals and trace metals
since neither the waters nor the organisms
are well-characterized at this time. Similarly,
it is impossible to gauge the ongoing health
and reliability of a bioreactor without well-
defined, measurable properties of the active
microbe populations. Ideally, some studies
should be directed towards genetically en-
gineering and selecting for bacteria that pref-
erentially consume perchlorate over oxygen
as a terminal oxidant (electron acceptor).
Biological degradation is already in use by
the USAF for wastewater treatment. Before
it can move to the arena of drinking water,
it will have to demonstrate itself as a safe
and cost-effective tool. There are presently
too many unanswered questions about the
organisms involved in the process to meet
the regulatory needs of safe drinking water.
More effort must be expended in elu-
cidating the mechanism by which microbes
reduce perchlorate, including the isolation,
purification and characterization of the active
enzyme(s). It may be possible to exploit the
mechanism whereby the bacteria are capable
of overcoming the activation barrier, but only
if we have a better understanding of that
mechanism. Along these lines, chemical re-
duction may become an option if suitable—
that is, labile, non-toxic, convenient, inex-
pensive—reductants are found.
Electrochemical reduction experiments
have remained at the bench scale [see review,
Urbansky (1998)]. Additional bench- (beaker)
scale, intermediate- (bucket) scale, and pilot-
(barrel and tank) scale experiments are
needed to determine what electrodes can be
practically constructed with cost constraints
and how thoughtful designs to maximize sur-
face area might be effectively used to obviate
problems such as slow ion diffusion to the
cathode surface and poor association with the
surface. It will be necessary to explore means
of minimizing corrosion, surface deactivation
and undesirable competing redox reactions
(e.g. the electrolysis of water and sodium
chloride) under drinking water conditions.
If electrolysis of sodium chloride cannot be
prevented, it will be necessary to recombine
the NaOH with the C12; this could ultimately
have some use in disinfection. Since pipe
corrosion will be substantially influenced by
other water components (i.e. pH; alkalinity;
NOM, metal and salt content), a thorough
characterization of influent water will also
be essential, and the effects of influent water
quality on the electroreduction process must
be considered.
The development of inexpensive and highly
selective resins for anion exchange should
be pursued. While there are some nitrate-
selective resins, this technology will require
further refinement before it can be applied
to perchlorate because of the much higher
concentration permissible and the much
lower concentration of perchlorate in the raw
water in most cases. Similarly, since the semi-
permeable membranes of electrodialysis are
based on ion exchange technology, they too
will benefit from projects in this area. In-
tegrating these or other systems into existing
treatment schemes for utilities processing
large volumes of water daily needs extensive
-------
Perchlorate risk management issues 91
pilot scale or demonstration work, -with care-
ful attention paid to the net benefits relative
to the total costs.
Because some techniques, such as elec-
trodialysis or reverse osmosis, can be ex-
pected to dominate the home or POU system
market, the development of standards for
perchlorate removal by commercially avail-
able units will be essential. This could logic-
ally be done as an extension of the voluntary
performance-based standards for POU de-
vices that already exist under American
National Standards Institute/National San-
itation Foundation (ANS1/NSF) standards for
drinking water treatment units and related
products.8
Little is known about the natural oc-
currence of perchlorate. It is not a significant
component of seawater, but solid deposits
are found in Chilean potassium nitrate (also
known as Chile saltpeter) (Schilt, 1979).
Given the celerity with which perchlorate-
reducing microbes seem to appear in FBBRs
inoculated with sludge, one can only conclude
that these organisms evolved naturally from
exposure or have a serendipitous advantage
in their ability to metabolize this ion.9 Since
the former seems more reasonable than the
latter, natural sources of perchlorate must be
in the environment. Additional investigation
into naturally occurring mechanisms for the
generation of perchlorate would be helpful
in ascertaining whether only anthropogenic
sources are significant contributors to
pollution. Moreover, further knowledge of
natural background occurrence levels is re-
quired. If it can be shown that perchlorate is
produced naturally in the environment and
yet levels are very low, we must conclude that
natural attenuation is responsible for the
apparent dichotomy. At present, little is
known about the ability of normal flora and
8 Relevant voluntary standards for certification of unit
performance developed by NSF International, Ann
Arbor, Michigan, include ANS1/NSF Standard 53 (Drink-
ing Water Treatment Units, Health Effects), ANS1/NSF
Standard 58 (Reverse Osmosis Drinking Water Treat-
ment Systems) and ANS1/NSF Standard 62 (Drinking
Water Distillation Systems).
9 We point out that chlorate salts are present in the
environment and chlorate-reducing organisms are fairly
abundant. It is possible that mechanisms that evolved
in chlorate reducers are readily adapted to perchlorate
reduction. Nevertheless, we feel that the chemical nature
of perchlorate relative to other chlorine oxyanions makes
this an unsatisfactory explanation.
fauna (macro- or microscopic) to consume per-
chlorate, regardless of the source. However,
the confirmed existence of several genera of
perchlorate-reducing monera in the laborat-
ory suggests that some organisms are already
present in the environment. Due to its aridity,
the western US is not a choice place for
discovering these organisms; however, they
may play a significant role in moister regions
of the country. This remains largely un-
known.
Although ammonium perchlorate appears
to have been the original source for most of
the perchlorate in the environment, we do
not know what cation is presently responsible
for the charge balance. As ammonium is read-
ily biodegraded and has not been identified
at many sites, there is speculation that it has
been replaced primarily by sodium. While
this is not an unreasonable assertion per
se, one can view ammonium perchlorate as
ammonia and perchloric acid. If the ammonia
alone is biodegraded naturally, then remain-
ing cation is a proton (hydrogen ion). Since
perchloric acid is a strong acid, whatever
basic anhydrides (of alkaline earth, trans-
ition, or other metals in low oxidation states)
are present in the soil will react to form the
respective metal perchlorate salts. Thus, the
composition of the surrounding soil and rock
will determine what cations are present.
Managing risk: other issues
for researchers, utilities,
policy makers and regulators
As of the writing of this paper, the EPA had
not established a formal policy for the risk
management of perchlorate-tainted water,
and we do not intend to propose one here.
Nevertheless, we shall raise a number of
questions that apply to risk management de-
cisions and that will have to be considered
in formulating policy or regulations at any
level—federal, state or local. In addition, it
will be up to regulators and policy makers to
address these issues (and probably others)
when facing the public that consumes the
water, the utilities that treat and produce
the water and anyone else with an interest.
Among some consumer groups and even
some water purveyors, there is a growing
-------
92 E. T. Urbansky and M. R. Schock
desire to reduce perchlorate concentrations to
undetectable levels (<4ngml~1) with public
health as the concern. Suppose the es-
tablished safe level10 is higher than the de-
tection limit (the provisional action level is
18 ngml"1). Is there then any benefit in treat-
ing water to reach perchlorate concentrations
below the safe level? Corrosion of the dis-
tribution system or other similar engineering
matters do not appear to apply, so seemingly
there are no secondary benefits to reducing
the perchlorate concentration below the safe
level. If there is no public health benefit, is
there any other reason to do it? If the benefit
is peace of mind, what cost is appropriate?
Depending on the answers to these questions,
many water supplies may require no treat-
ment at all.
How does the risk from perchlorate com-
pare with other public health risks in drink-
ing water? Are financial resources better
devoted to other problems in potable water
production systems? Whatever treatment
technologies are eventually employed must
be based on sound scientific reasoning, bear-
ing in mind that there will always be multiple
viewpoints of varying intensity. In terms of
economic resources, how can the opportunity
cost of treatment be justified?
Besides the treatment technologies de-
scribed here, which involve directly modifying
contaminated water, other options may be
available at a particular location. For ex-
ample, can a contaminated water be blended
with a 'clean' water? For those utilities that
have the luxury of drawing from multiple
water sources, diluting a water that exceeds
the safe level with a water containing less
perchlorate is a conceivable option. As long
as blending would not substantially change
the background constituent concentrations,
no new corrosion control studies would be
needed (US EPA, 1991a,b, 1992, 1994b,
1998b,c).
If a health advisory is eventually issued by
the EPA Office of Water, primacy agents will
have to ask: What other factors besides the
10 Rather than choose a particular legal definition of
what is a safe level for drinking water, e.g. NOAEL or
MCL, we shall use the generic term safe level without
further elaboration, realizing that various public health,
regulatory and environmental authorities view this dif-
ferently. When we use this term, we mean a level that
has been established by government authority and that
ensures the protection of public health.
concentration of perchlorate in the drinking
water determine what is safe?
Perchlorate exerts its effect not by reacting
with something, but by impeding another
process. Cells in the thyroid gland (as well
as the salivary and gastric glands), possess
an iodide pump which brings iodide ions into
the cell for subsequent generation of iod-
inated hormones. The pump discriminates
among anions on the basis of size; con-
sequently, perchlorate (and other large an-
ions) interfere with this process by compet-
ing for uptake (Foye, 1989; Orgiassi, 1990;
Capen, 1994; Cooper, 1996; Chiovato et al,
1997). Presumably, the only adverse effects
of perchlorate in drinking water would be
derived from its direct hindrance of the syn-
thesis of thyroid hormones or secondary ef-
fects resulting from decreased output of those
hormones. As a result of decreased thyroid
hormone production, the pituitary gland re-
leases more thyroid-stimulating hormone
(TSH), causing the thyroid to grow. In ro-
dents, continued exposure to chemicals that
bring about this effect has been shown to lead
to the development of neoplasias or adenomas
(Capen, 1994). At present, we do not know
whether the perchlorate concentrations in
drinking water are capable of producing sim-
ilar effects in humans.
The medical literature has anecdotal re-
ports of toxicity (especially aplastic anemia)
from chemotherapeutic use in treating thy-
roid problems (Hobson, 1961; Johnson and
Moore, 1961). Despite these reports, potas-
sium perchlorate (KC1O4) has been suc-
cessfully and safely used to treat
thyrotoxicosis induced by the cardiac drug
amiodarone, which is used to treat arrhy-
thmias; daily doses of 0-80-1 -00 g KC1O4 have
resulted in neither aplastic anemia nor
nephrotoxicity as the earlier reports sug-
gested (Connell, 1981; Martino et al, 1986;
Martino et al, 1987; Harjai and Licata, 1997).
A review of the toxicology literature by Von
Burg (1995) found that there is currently no
evidence to suggest that perchlorate, when
ingested at daily doses of less than 1 mg, will
have any non-thyroid impact. A recent study
by Lamm et al. (1999) found that workers
in an ammonium perchlorate manufacturing
plant suffered no thyroid effects from inhala-
tion of NH4C1O4 dust and that perchlorate
was readily egested by glomerulo-
nephrofiltration.
-------
Perchlorate risk management issues 93
Although we do not want to dis-
proportionately emphasize them, several
questions remain: Are there likely to be any
effects, especially with chronic low-level ex-
posure over a lifetime (rather than acute
exposure)? Does the water contain any other
thyroid-interfering agents? Are there any po-
tentiators or synergistic agents in a water
supply that could make the effects worse?
Even if the answer to all three questions is not
likely or probably not, should an additional
safety net be built into a regulatory or risk
management position?
Due to the competition between iodide and
perchlorate, it is clear that the safe level must
be influenced by the daily dietary intake of
iodide salts. Increased use of iodine-con-
taining compounds antiseptics, non-pre-
scription drugs and foodstuffs has raised the
US daily intake to ~ 0-50-0-75 mg of iodide,
and it may be as high as 1-0 mg, up from
0-2 mg 10-15 years ago (Wartofsky, 1998;
Andreoli et al, 1997). Meanwhile, the US
Department of Agriculture recommended
dietary allowance (RDA) is 0-20 mg per day
for a lactating woman and 0-15 mg for a 170 Ib
(77kg) adult man; thus, the average Amer-
ican ingests ~2-5 times the RDA (Andreoli
et al, 1997; USDA, 1998). The safe level set
overall must assume some average iodide
intake for this purpose, which may not be
representative of the iodide consumption for
a particular region. As the dietary con-
sumption of iodide increases, the competition
at the iodide pump is lessened. Accordingly,
is it possible that some regional populations
might be afforded a level of protection because
of a diet naturally high in iodide?
We are familiar with the use of iodized salt
when local soils are too deficient to produce
crops that supply the daily iodide require-
ment. Iodide supplements are cheap and
readily available. Therefore, is it possible to
counter the effects of perchlorate simply by
supplementing the diet with more iodide?
Iodide supplementation of up to 0-50 mg
day"1 has shown no effect on thyroid func-
tion; consumption of 40-150 mg day"1 for
1-3 weeks produced observable changes in
hormone levels, but these nonetheless re-
mained within normal physiological ranges
(Roti and Vagenakis, 1996). Although initial
dosing inhibits iodine organification (the
Wolff-Chaikoff effect), continued administra-
tion of iodide results in escape from this
inhibition (Nagataki and Yokoyama, 1996).
Does managing the risk associated with per-
chlorate-contaminated drinking water ne-
cessarily imply treating the water or can
other public health measures be viable so-
lutions?11
There are no simple or straightforward an-
swers to the questions posed, and each com-
munity, utility or regulatory body will need
to wrestle with these questions as they work
towards specific solutions to meet specific
needs. What works for Las Vegas, Nevada,
might not work for Magna, Utah and vice
versa. As with most environmental problems,
dealing with perchlorate contamination is
complex; each medium (drinking water,
wastewater, land, etc.) has its own subset of
issues. There is unlikely to be any best so-
lution for any set of circumstances, but rather
a compromise of competing strategies for
meeting competing needs. Maintaining a
reasonable "big-picture' perspective is one of
the most important things that researchers,
policy makers, and regulators alike can do.
Authors' note: Perchloric acid and per-
chlorate salts have a rich history in industry,
science, medicine, space exploration and de-
fense. They function as inert electrolytes in
chemical studies, catalysts in industrial and
synthetic processes and boosters or solid ox-
idants in rockets and missiles. They are too
valuable to give up, and so we must find safe
ways to accommodate their use.
Acknowledgements
The authors, who sit on the IPSC, wish to acknow-
ledge several other committee members for their
contributions to the IPSC as well as for in-
formation they have provided: Dan Rogers (USAF,
Judge Advocate's Office), Annie M. Jarabek (EPA,
NCEA), Michael Osinski (EPA, OW), Kevin P.
Mayer (EPA, Region 9) and Peter Grevatt (EPA,
OSWER).
© 1999 US Government
11 We want to stress that neither the EPA nor the
authors advocate the administration or consumption of
iodide supplements as a preventive or curative measure
without medical supervision. Nevertheless, we do con-
sider it to be an area worthy of investigation and ex-
ploration.
-------
94 E. T. Urbansky and M. R. Schock
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