Key Facts

• Nearly 100 million Americans have drinking water with three toxic chemicals: chromium-6, arsenic, and nitrate.
• The EWG map shows areas with water supplies contaminated by these chemicals above health limits.
• California, Arizona, and Texas are noted as the most affected states with high levels of all three contaminants.
• Chromium-6 alone affects water for more than 260 million people, arsenic for 134 million, and nitrate for 263 million.
• The EWG suggests treatments like ion exchange or reverse osmosis can remove these chemicals from water.
• Current U.S. regulations focus on single contaminants, missing those that occur together.
• The EWG says treating multiple contaminants at once could prevent 50,000 cancer cases over a lifetime.
• The group is calling for updated water treatment systems to manage multiple contaminants efficiently.