[Sosfbay-discuss] Is Our Tap Water Toxic?

[Andrea Dorey]

Tian,
I would definitely be interested in doing a program on this subject  
so that seniors know their risks and what to do about it.
For now, I am seriously handicapped post-surgery and will be unable  
to do much about it for about another month.
Andrea

On Aug 23, 2007, at 11:38 AM, Tian Harter wrote:

>> Denise Johnson-Kula
>>
>> August 14
>>
>> Is Our Tap Water Toxic?
>>
>> Denise Johnson-Kula, along with other individuals who experienced
>> adverse reactions from chloramine, founded Citizens Concerned About
>> Chloramine (CCAC) in June 2004, several months after the San  
>> Francisco
>> Public UtilitiesCommission added a new disinfectant, chloramine, a
>> combination of chlorine and ammonia, into the Hetch Hetchy water
>> supply.
>>
>> CCAC (www.chloramine.org) is a non-profit organization whose mission
>> is to raise the public's level of awareness about chloramine and its
>> effects on health, the environment and plumbing, when used as a
>> disinfectant in the water.
>>
>> Denise, CACC President and Spokesperson, will discuss the adverse
>> effects of chloramine and summarize the work of CCAC, including its
>> support for Ira Ruskin's chloramine bill, AB559, (co authored by
>> Senator Migden) that will have the skin, respiratory, and digestive
>> studies done that were never conducted. She will also discuss CACC's
>> work with concerned community members in organizations in other
>> regions of the country (and in other countries) that use chloramine
>> to disinfect the water.
>>
>
> Denise began by telling us of the frightening experience she had when
> chloramine first went into the water supply. When she first  
> showered in
> chloraminated water, she experienced such severe asthma-like symptoms
> that they were life threatening. She saw her doctor and they went
> through a lengthy process of eliminating any possible cause. Nothing
> helped. The symptoms got worse. Over a month later, she and her doctor
> learned of the change in disinfectants from chlorine to chloramine. In
> order to tell if the new disinfectant was the culprit, Denise began to
> travel out of town to shower where there was well water disinfected  
> with
> chlorine and she found immediate relief from her symptoms.
>
> Denise also had rashes and digestive irritations from the  
> chloraminated
> water which all disappeared when she used bottled spring water or well
> water disinfected with chlorine.
>
> Denise's doctor diagnosed her case as chloramine mediated respiratory
> toxicity. This is a chemical irritation of the skin and mucous  
> membranes
> and is not an allergy.
>
> When her case was publicized in the newspapers, hundreds of people
> contacted her reporting that they were also experiencing the same  
> skin,
> respiratory and digestive irritations. Many of them decided to  
> avoid the
> chloraminated tap water, substituting non chloraminated sources  
> such as
> bottled spring water and they also found their symptoms completely
> cleared up.
>
> Denise and some of the other people who had been affected by  
> chloramine
> formed Citizens Concerned About chloramine (CCAC). Denise began to do
> research into the health effects of chloramine and found that no  
> studies
> on the skin, respiratory or digestive (including food exposure)  
> effects
> of chloramine have ever been done. There was evidence that at higher
> dosage levels, chloramine can cause skin irritations, digestive
> inflammation and severe respiratory distress. Even fatal reactions  
> from
> pulmonary edema had been reported.
>
> Denise has also found evidence that chloramine leaches lead out of
> pipes, brass faucets and the solder connecting them when it comes into
> contact with such. Other research has proven that chlorine is a far
> better disinfectant than chloramine. Because of these factors, the
> states of CT, DE, ID, MT, NV, NJ, RI, TN, UT, and WV have chosen  
> not to
> switch to chloramine from chlorine for their public water supplies.
>
> CCAC is now working with our legislators to get the skin, respiratory,
> and digestive studies on chloramine done. CCAC is also working with  
> our
> Federal Legislators like Anna Eshoo to get an EPA waiver to return to
> the use of the use of chlorine as our disinfectant until the health
> studies on chloramine are completed.
>
> For more information on chloramine and CCAC, please see their website,
> www.chloramine.org
>
> Denise is looking for opportunities to talk to groups about  
> chloramine,
> so if you know of a group that would be interested, please call her at
> (650) 328-0424.
>
> -- 
> Tian
> http://tian.greens.org
> I'm between 8 and 10 on Grasslands if you go to Burning Man next week.
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