That's good news for residents who have been worried that the perchloroethylene, a dry cleaning and degreasing solvent, might end up in their water. It's also good news for public officials who have been pushing for federal funding that can be used to address the contamination before the chemical makes the well unusable.
Salt Lake City Council member Dave Buhler said a U.S. House budget contains $700,000 to address the chemical plume. Now he's hoping the U.S. Senate will include the money, too.
"The only thing that is a little bit of a disappointment is that the city would have to put any [matching] money in it," said Buhler.
Perchloroethylene, also called PCE, has been a problem all over the nation, everywhere there are dry cleaners. Colorless and sweet-smelling, the chemical travels readily in underground water and only small amounts are needed to contaminate a water supply.
It is considered a possible carcinogen to those who are chronically exposed. But, in small amounts, it can cause dizziness, sleepiness, headache, nausea and skin irritation.
Jeff Niermeyer, deputy director of the Salt Lake City Department of Public Utilities, said there is an ongoing investigation by state and federal environmental protection officials to identify the source of the contamination. Three wells in the area have detected levels of perchloroethylene between 11 and 320 parts per billion (ppb).
The contamination is bounded by 500 South and Sunnyside Avenue (825 South) and by Guardsman Way (1580 East) and 1300 East.
In the city well, at 500 South and 1500 East, a test in 2004 turned up 2 ppb of perchloroethylene, about 3 ppb under the maximum level allowed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
It rained enough this year that the city did not have to rely on the 500 South and 1500 East well, Niermeyer said. That helped prevent the contamination from being drawn into the water supply.
"We did test it," he said, "and it did not test with any PCE in it."
And, if the federal dollars come through, it should be relatively simple to treat any contaminated water that does enter the system.
In a January meeting about the plume, many residents said they did not want to have the area designated for cleanup under the federal Superfund because that might take a considerable amount of time and the stigma might be attached to nearby property.
fahys@sltrib.com
What is it?
Perchloroethylene is a solvent commonly used in dry cleaning and as a metal degreaser. It also can be found in paint stripper, spot remover and shoe polish.
Perchloroethylene can cause liver and kidney damage and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is re-evaluating its likelihood of causing cancer. In smaller doses, it can cause dizziness, headache, nausea, confusion and skin irritation.
The book and movie A Civil Action is based on one community's lawsuit blaming the chemical for a leukemia cluster near Woburn, Mass.
What is perchloroethylene?
Perchloroethylene is a solvent commonly used in dry cleaning and as a metal degreaser. It also can be found in paint stripper, spot remover and shoe polish.
Perchloroethylene can cause liver and kidney damage and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is re-evaluating its likelihood of causing cancer. In smaller doses, it can cause dizziness, headache, nausea, confusion and skin irritation.
The book and movie A Civil Action is based on one community's lawsuit blaming the chemical for a leukemia cluster near Woburn, Mass.
