research
development
www.epa.gov/ord
FACT SHEET
EPA's Water Treatment Demonstration Project to Reduce
Amount of Arsenic in Tehachapi, CA, Drinking Water
Researchers from EPA's National Risk Management
Research Laboratory (NRMRL), headquartered in
Cincinnati, Ohio, are working in partnership with
Golden Hills Community Service District in Tehachapi, CA,
and a contractor to install and operate a water treatment
technology aimed at reducing the level of arsenic in local
drinking water. Operation of the demonstration project
began in October, 2005, and is being regularly monitored
to determine progress.
Background
Arsenic is a naturally occurring contaminant found in
ground water in various locations throughout the United States. Research and development
efforts at EPA have identified certain technologies that remove arsenic from drinking water.
Some community water systems often face challenges in choosing the right technology to
reduce the level of arsenic. Therefore, in select demonstration projects across the country,
just like this one in Tehachapi, EPA is partnering with municipalities and equipment
producers to bring the most appropriate drinking water technology into the field and
demonstrate their effectiveness.
The Project
New water treatment equipment is installed to reduce arsenic in a community's drinking water.
The water quality is then monitored to verify the effectiveness of the treatment. The equipment
used in the Golden Hills Community Service District installation is produced by MEI Zirconium
Media, Inc., working under a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement. The
equipment was matched to characteristics of the source water. While Golden Hills Service
District will operate the new equipment, scientists from Battelle, an EPA contractor in Ohio,
will track the operation of the arsenic removal technology by analyzing weekly water samples.
EPA will use the results from this project and others like it to demonstrate new methods for
arsenic removal from drinking water.
more
Golden Hills' new arsenic
treatment equipment
Building ii scientific /otindation for sound environment*!! decisions

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The Goal
The goal of this project is to demonstrate and verify the effectiveness of MEI Zirconium
Media, Inc. technology in reducing levels of arsenic in Golden Hills Community Service
District's drinking water from around 14 parts per billion (ppb) to 10 ppb or lower.
Operational cost is also being studied.
Expected Outcomes
•	Other small communities will gain knowledge about the performance of arsenic
removal technology through the results of the demonstration project. The results
will assist them in selecting the most appropriate and cost effective technology to
use at their sites.
•	Residents will benefit by having arsenic levels in their drinking water reduced
below 10 ppb, complying with the new EPA standard for arsenic in drinking
water.
Details about these demonstration projects can be found at this Web site:
http://www.epa.gov/ORD/NRMRL/arsenic.
Technical Contact: Tom Sorg - (513) 569-7370 - sorg.tom@epa.gov
June 27, 2006

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