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Santa Fe, New Mexico (AP) —US Department of Energy detects carcinogenic chemicals in and around one of the major nuclear weapons laboratories, despite concerns from environmentalists and New Mexico regulators I would like to switch to a less stringent test for.
A federal agency is using a three-year review of New Mexico’s surface water regulations to drive tests at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, where detection of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) is more restricted, Santa Fe said. New Mexico reported. Medical research has shown that chemicals can cause cancer, impair the development of the child’s brain, damage the genital system, and increase the likelihood of heart and liver disease.
The Ministry of Energy claims that the test is sufficient and that the current methods required by the state far exceed what is needed.
Parties to the conflict submitted and testified in writing at a hearing held by the State Environmental Improvement Commission as part of a triennial review of surface water regulations.
Rachel Conn, project director of the Taos-based Amigos Bravos water-saving organization, has denounced the proposed test changes as another attempt by the energy sector to reach out to public health protection.
“It’s a shame that our taxpayers’ money is being used to lower standards for protecting New Mexico’s water and weaken our water quality standards,” she said.
The birthplace of the atomic bomb, the Los Alamos National Laboratory, has more than 130 miles (209 kilometers) of streams in and around its premises, covering 36 square miles (93 square kilometers). Contamination is monitored every hour to every year, and in some cases every five years.
In New Mexico, the US Environmental Protection Agency issues drainage and stormwater outflow permits, and the state checks to see if water quality meets that standard.
Energy consultant John Toll testified that New Mexico needs to use EPA-sponsored tests because the test methods required by the state have never been formally approved by the EPA.
He also stated that the state cannot require tests to detect amounts of PCBs below the minimum levels stated in federal guidelines.
Shelly Lemon, director of the State Environment Department’s Surface Water Quality Department, argued that the state could adopt stricter regulations than federal regulations. More specifically, she wrote that state law does not prohibit government agencies from adopting stricter standards than the Clean Water Act.
Lemon is the only known method by which New Mexico’s current test method can assess whether wastewater and other emissions comply with state standards and federal pollutant permit limits, including PCBs. I said there is. The test is approved by the state and written into the regulation.
The state’s Natural Resources Council, Maggie Hartstebins, said New Mexico residents, including indigenous Pueblo residents near the institute, would benefit from more information about the water they consume. He said he was receiving it.
The United States aims to ease pollutant testing at the Nuclear Weapons Institute | WGN Radio 720
Source link The United States aims to ease pollutant testing at the Nuclear Weapons Institute | WGN Radio 720
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