Widespread Water Pollutant Found to Be Highly Toxic
The scientific evidence continues to grow that trichloroethylene (TCE), the most widespread industrial contaminant found in drinking water, can cause cancer in people. TCE is a solvent used in adhesives, paint and spot removers. The military uses it widely to clean airplanes and missiles, and has resisted for years greater restrictions upon its use. A new National Academy of Sciences report found the chemical is a possible cause of kidney cancer, reproductive and developmental damage, impaired neurological function and autoimmune disease. The fact that the chemical has been used so widely, and it has been so difficult to react to emerging scientific information regarding its toxicity, shows the extent to which toxic chemicals are routinely introduced without regard to human health. There are hundreds of toxics in our water (search) and environment which we do not fully understand their human and ecological impacts, much less their combined interactions. Humanity must move beyond introducing "wonder" chemicals into their habitat that they do not understand or need.
