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State Data Show Nearly 300 Water Systems Out Of Compliance

State Water Resources Control Board

The state has released new data on California’s drinking water--and they reveal almost 300 public water systems are out of compliance with state standards.

The data and an interactive map are part of the state water board’s new Human Right to Water Portal. They reveal 292 non-compliant water systems across the state. Violations include unsafe levels of arsenic, nitrates, and other contaminants, as well as non-compliant treatment techniques. 

"When you think about safe and affordable drinking water, you might think about Flint, for example, but what most Californians are not aware of is that right here in our own state, over a million Californians are exposed to unsafe drinking water each year," says Jonathan Nelson, policy director of the non-profit Community Water Center.

The San Joaquin Valley contains dozens of non-compliant water systems, which stretch from Humboldt County to the Mexican border. Nelson says determining the extent of the problem is the first step of many.

"We can then start moving forward with: What do we do?" he says. "What is the solution or set of solutions, to ensure that those impacted with unsafe and unaffordable drinking water ultimately do have safe and affordable drinking water?"

The data do not include private wells and some extremely small water systems, and exclude some contaminants like perchlorate.

Kerry Klein is an award-winning reporter whose coverage of public health, air pollution, drinking water access and wildfires in the San Joaquin Valley has been featured on NPR, KQED, Science Friday and Kaiser Health News. Her work has earned numerous regional Edward R. Murrow and Golden Mike Awards and has been recognized by the Association of Health Care Journalists and Society of Environmental Journalists. Her podcast Escape From Mammoth Pool was named a podcast “listeners couldn’t get enough of in 2021” by the radio aggregator NPR One.
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