Rep. Kaptur Recognizes EPA For Issuing Algal Bloom Response Recommendations

Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur recognized the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today for releasing preliminary guidance for communities dealing with toxic algae, providing new safe consumption limits and recommending a collection of best-practices for water testing, treatment, and public notification.

"One of the most glaring gaps in our algal bloom planning has been a lack of clear recommendations for state and local governments to respond," said Rep. Kaptur. "While this is only a first step, today's draft guidance from EPA will allow our region to prepare short-term emergency response plans using the best available information to help keep our citizens safe. With another algal bloom season looming, I urge our state and local leaders to review and respond to these recommendations as soon as possible."

Today's EPA announcement includes best practices for water monitoring, treatment options, coordinating with health agencies, and communicating with the public. In response to continued Congressional pressure and calls from state and local officials, EPA released their draft report early so communities will have time to prepare for the coming algal bloom season. An official EPA health advisory is set to be finalized by June 15.

"This is an important step as we come into another algal bloom season, but we still have a lot of work to do," Kaptur added. "We need better monitoring systems, better public awareness, and better research to determine the best prevention and treatment options. We still know very little about the long-term effects of lower-level exposure to microcystins, and the blooms will continue and the dangers will remain until we find a way to stop them."

The new guidance works from the most up-to-date EPA analysis and recommendations, setting short-term exposure limits for microcystins in drinking water. Recommended ten-day health advisory exposure levels are 1.6 parts per billion (μg/L) for adults and school-age children, and .3 parts per billion (μg/L) for infants and small children. Prior to these recommendations, there was no official U.S. national drinking water safety standard for microcystins. As a result, the EPA had defaulted to a World Health Organization standard of 1 part per billion in carrying out tests of Toledo's water quality during the emergency August.

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