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THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Vice President
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For Immediate Release
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March 28, 2000 |
VICE PRESIDENT GORE ANNOUNCES NEW MEASURES TO PROVIDE SAFER
DRINKING WATER FOR 40 MILLION AMERICANS
Washington, D.C.--Vice President Gore today
unveiled steps to protect an additional 40 million Americans from potentially
dangerous microbes, including Cryptosporidium, in their drinking water. A new
standard proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will provide the
first-ever protection against these contaminants for people in small
communities. This proposal is expected to prevent as many as 83,000 cases of
waterborne illness each year.
In addition, the Vice President announced how the
President's proposed $825 million Safe Drinking Water Revolving Loan Fund
for fiscal year 2001 would be allocated among all the states if fully funded by
Congress.
"Americans enjoy some of the safest drinking water
in the world. Today, more than 90 percent of the people served by community
water systems receive tap water that meets all federal health standards," Gore
said. " I am proud of this Administration's commitment to ensuring that
every American receives safe, healthy drinking water from their tap. I am
dedicated to ensuring that they receive the resources they need to continue to
make that happen."
Cryptosporidium, a microscopic parasite found in
animal and other organic wastes, is one of several potentially harmful microbes
that can contaminate drinking water. It is highly resistant to traditional
disinfection treatments, and requires advanced filtration and other processes
to be removed from water. A 1993 Cryptosporidium outbreak in Milwaukee sickened
400,000 people, hospitalized more than 4,000, and caused more than 50 deaths
among people with weakened immune systems. Since then, there have been smaller
cryptosporidiosis outbreaks in Nevada, Oregon and Georgia.
In December l998, President Clinton announced the
first public health standards to remove Cryptosporidium in large water systems
that serve 140 million people, to prevent up to 460,000 cases of waterborne
illness a year. The l998 standards strengthened filtration and monitoring
requirements to remove Cryptosporidium and other microbes.
Today's proposal would extend these public
health protections by requiring 11,500 small water systems serving fewer than
10,000 people each to protect against Cryptosporidium and will improve
treatment processes at water systems of all sizes. Currently, more than 18
million people are served by these smaller water systems. To help communities
upgrade their water systems, the Administration's FY 2001 budget proposes
$825 million for the Safe Drinking Water revolving Loan Fund. The fund, created
by the Safe Drinking Water Act amendments signed in l996 by President Clinton,
provides grants to make low-interest loans to cities to upgrade the
nation's drinking water systems. This initiative maintains that fifteen
percent of the loans must go to small communities.
Since 1996, this revolving loan fund has made
almost $3.6 billion available to water systems around the country, and this
month, the EPA will have funded over 1,000 loans and grants under this program.
Vice President Gore's announcement unveils what the President's
proposed $825 million would mean for every state in the country. (A list of
state-by-state allocations is attached.)
EPA will take public comment for 60 days on the
proposals, called the "Long Term 1 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Proposed
Rule" and the "Filter Backwash Proposed Rule." Additional information on the
proposals can be found at: http://www.epa.gov/safewater or by calling
EPA's Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 1-800-426-4791.
BREAKDOWN OF SAFE DRINKING WATER GRANTS:
Following is a list of the funds that would be allocated under the
President's FY2001 budget proposal:
| State |
FY01 request |
| Alabama |
$9,279,900 |
| Alaska |
$7,806,300 |
| Arizona |
$7,955,400 |
| Arkansas |
$11,106,800 |
| California |
$84,525,400 |
| Colorado |
$10,503,400 |
| Connecticut |
$7,806,300 |
| Delaware |
$7,806,300 |
| Florida |
$22,628,500 |
| Georgia |
$16,720,600 |
| Hawaii |
$7,806,300 |
| Alabama |
$9,279,900 |
| Alaska |
$7,806,300 |
| Arizona |
$7,955,400 |
| Arkansas |
$11,106,800 |
| California |
$84,525,400 |
| Colorado |
$10,503,400 |
| Connecticut |
$7,806,300 |
| Delaware |
$7,806,300 |
| Florida |
$22,628,500 |
| Georgia |
$16,720,600 |
| Hawaii |
$7,806,300 |
| Idaho |
$7,806,300 |
| Illinois |
$27,134,300 |
| Indiana |
$9,523,100 |
| Iowa |
$12,319,800 |
| Kansas |
$10,970,800 |
| Kentucky |
$11,895,400 |
| Louisiana |
$10,906,300 |
| Maine |
$7,806,300 |
| Maryland |
$7,806,300 |
| Massachusetts |
$30,051,400 |
| Michigan |
$22,966,700 |
| Minnesota |
$12,996,600 |
| Mississippi |
$9,067,300 |
| Missouri |
$10,496,000 |
| Montana |
$7,806,300 |
| Nebraska |
$7,806,300 |
| Nevada |
$7,806,300 |
| New Hampshire |
$7,806,300 |
| New Jersey |
$19,016,600 |
| New Mexico |
$7,806,300 |
| New York |
$49,396,100 |
| North Carolina |
$14,096,400 |
| North Dakota |
$7,806,300 |
| Ohio |
$24,999,900 |
| Oklahoma |
$11,207,700 |
| Oregon |
$11,584,300 |
| Pennsylvania |
$24,560,000 |
| Puerto Rico |
$11,208,500 |
| Rhode Island |
$7,806,300 |
| South Carolina |
$8,407,200 |
| South Dakota |
$7,806,300 |
| Tennessee |
$10,476,800 |
| Texas |
$59,210,000 |
| Utah |
$7,806,300 |
| Vermont |
$7,806,300 |
| Virginia |
$15,231,900 |
| Washington |
$21,013,000 |
| West Virginia |
$7,806,300 |
| Wisconsin |
$10,466,800 |
| Wyoming |
$7,806,300 |
| D.C. |
$7,806,300 |
| Territories |
$2,576,100 |
| Tribal |
$12,375,000 |
| Unregulated Contaminants |
$2,000,000 |
| Operator Certification |
$30,000,000 |
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