Is chromium-6 present in El Paso County water, and what does that mean for your household? Government monitoring found chromium-6 in the surface water source serving the Security Water System in El Paso County, Colorado, but there is no health-based violation reported.
Geogenic Hexavalent Chromium in Arid and Alkaline Aquifers versus Industrial Plating Sources
Chromium-6 Detected in a Surface Water System Serving El Paso County
Federal data collected under the Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR3) from 2013 to 2015 showed chromium-6 detected in all 44 samples taken from the Security Water System, which serves about 20,000 people with surface water.
Natural versus Man-Made Sources of Chromium-6
Hexavalent chromium, or chromium(VI), can originate from natural sources such as geological formations common in arid and alkaline regions, or from industrial activities like plating and manufacturing. The El Paso County water system relies on surface water, making industrial sources less likely but not impossible. The reported data do not specify the source.
Trivalent versus Hexavalent Chromium: Why a Total-Chromium Result Cannot Answer the Question
Total Chromium Data Does Not Distinguish Chromium-6 Levels
Total chromium is the sum of all chromium forms, including the trivalent form (chromium-3), which is less reactive and generally regarded as less of a concern. For the El Paso County system, total chromium was detected in 36 of 44 samples but total chromium data alone cannot specify the amount of chromium-6 present.
Chromium-6 Needs Specific Measurement
Because chromium(VI) is chemically distinct and has different health effects, measuring only total chromium cannot give a full picture. The federal sampling here did separately measure chromium-6, setting it apart from total chromium.
How Many Samples and Wells Stand Behind the Figures, and What a Small Sample Means
44 Chromium-6 Results from One Public Water System
The data come from a single public water system with 7,519 connections and a population of 20,000, sampled 44 times over several months. This number of samples provides a moderate view of chromium-6 occurrence in that system's source water.
Sample Size Limits Generalization to Individual Households
These figures describe system-wide water quality, not individual tap water. Testing specific household water is necessary to know the exact chromium-6 level there.
How the Treated Water Differs at the Tap Once the Documented Technology Is in Place
Chromium-6 Can Be Addressed by the Autotrol Chromium-6 Filter
The Autotrol Chromium-6 Filter ships ready to configure and is designed to reduce chromium-6 in water supplies. When correctly set up for home use, it changes the treated water by lowering chromium(VI) concentrations at the point of use.
Managing Chromium-6 at Home
This technology provides a documented method for households wanting to limit chromium-6 presence in their tap water, complementing knowledge from public water system sampling.
Why Aesthetic Secondary Standards Differ from Health-Based Limits, Applied to This Constituent
No Federal Maximum Contaminant Level Exists for Chromium-6
The Environmental Protection Agency has set a maximum contaminant level (MCL) for total chromium at 100 micrograms per liter (µg/L or ppb), but not specifically for hexavalent chromium. All chromium-6 detections for the El Paso system were well below this total chromium MCL.
Understanding Aesthetic Standards
Aesthetic secondary standards guide taste, staining, or corrosivity concerns and are not health-based. They differ from health-based limits and do not mean the water is unsafe if thresholds are crossed.
Closing: The Single Test You Should Order to Know Your Water’s Chromium-6 Level
The only way to confirm chromium-6 in your household water is to have a certified laboratory perform a chromium-6 specific test on your tap water. A report specifying chromium(VI) in micrograms per liter (ppb) will settle your question with precise data.
Where this information comes from
Source: EPA SDWIS public water system record. Sampled 2014-10-27. These figures describe the public water system's record, not the plumbing inside any individual building.
On record: EPA UCMR3 monitoring (2013-2015) for Security WSD (CO0121775), CO: 88 results across 2 listed contaminants, 80 detections above the reporting level; no federal MCL for hexavalent chromium; total chromium MCL 100 ug/L
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