Despite a challenging 2011 legislative session during which business and industry outdid themselves painting a false picture that environmental protection comes at the expense of jobs, Clean Water Action had several victories! The Governor recently signed four bills put forward by Clean Water Action and allies as “the Human Right to Water” package. These measures will:

• help disadvantaged communities obtain funding for wastewater and drinking water treatment;
• deliver drinking water contamination notices to non-English speakers in their own languages; and,
• provide smaller communities with contaminated water supplies access to safer water nearby.

The Governor also signed AB 1319 (Butler), finally ending the use of bisphenol-A, a toxic plasticizer, in baby bottles and formula containers. Our priority bill, SB 568 (Lowenthal) would make California the first state to phase out foam food containers. It made significant progress after passing the Senate with bi-partisan support and is poised for passage in 2012.

After years of campaigning for a safe drinking water standard for hexavalent chromium — the pollutant featured in the movie Erin Brockovich — Clean Water Action was pleased with the final Public Health Goal (PHG) of 0.02 parts per billion issued by the state. The standard faced repeated industry challenges, but the state’s decision favoring health protection is based on sound science. Now state regulators must factor cost and technical feasibility into the final standard-setting. We will fight to ensure that public health is protected in the process.

As always, our dedicated staff is active at the local, state, and federal levels — building policy from the ground up, working to stop pollution at the source, and seeking effective cleanup of contaminated waterways.

Miriam Gordon
State Director, Clean Water Action and Clean Water Fund