Scholars Committee to Review Perchlorate Final Report, June 2004

"Perchlorate in Drinking Water: A Science and Policy Review"

(Download PDF File)

Also, see Perchlorate Workshop Background

The Urban Water Research Center (UWRC) at UC Irvine initiated this review because establishing the maximum contaminant level (MCL) for perchlorate is of great importance to the State of California. The California Department of Health Services (CDHS) must balance public health concerns, economic impacts of treatment, and water availability in the state when setting the MCL for a substance, which is a difficult task even with sufficient information. Reliable analytical tools to measure perchlorate in water were developed in 1997 and numerous water wells contaminated with perchlorate have now been identified throughout the State. However, complete information on health effects, amounts in agricultural products, and perhaps even natural sources (likely sub-parts per billion levels), is not available. The California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) published the public health goal (PHG) for perchlorate (2004), and several groups have specifically reviewed or are currently reviewing health effects, but none have examined the other aspects involved in setting the perchlorate standard for the State. The UWRC, through a committee of scholars, undertook to review the state of knowledge available and to highlight knowledge gaps that impede the scientific promulgation of the MCL for perchlorate.