Time to stock up on water filters.
Some of the worst tap water in America can be found right here in California, according to a report released last month by an environmental advocacy group.
The Environmental Working Group – made up of scientists, engineers and policy analysts – has garnered headlines in recent years for finding dangerous levels of the chemical bisphenol A in baby formula and other canned goods. This time, the group looked at large municipal water districts with more than 250,000 population.
In its ranking of the top 100 municipalities, eight California cities or county water districts landed in the bottom 25. They included Riverside which clocked in at 99, just ahead of bottom dweller Pensacola, Fla. Riverside had 30 pollutants detected in its water, and 15 chemicals found that exceeded health standards. The national average is 4.
Riverside County didn't fare much better with a ranking of 97 – and 13 chemicals that exceeded health standards.
San Diego, Fresno and Chino Hills also wound up in the bottom 15.
The Environmental Working Group is based in Washington, D.C. and has offices in Oakland. The group measured water quality based on a few key factors, including the number of chemicals detected in the past five years and the percentage of chemicals found of those tested. The group paid close attention to pollutants such as nitrates and arsenics. You can see the full listing of the top 100 here and learn more about the methodology.
Among California cities, Sacramento scored the highest, ranking 18th on the list, sandwiched between St. Paul, Minn. and Milwaukee, Wisc. Arlington, Texas, had the best water, according to the study.
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