By DORANY PINEDA (Associated Press)

LOS ANGELES (AP) — California regulators voted Wednesday to establish a drinking water limit on hexavalent chromium, a toxic chemical compound made infamous by the movie “Erin Brockovich.”

The rule is the first in the nation to specifically target the heavy metal, known as chromium-6, and is expected to reduce the number of cancer and kidney disease cases from long-term ingestion, state officials say.

The proposal was unanimously passed by the State Water Resources Control Board, though it needs approval from the Office of Administrative Law to take effect.

The standard could inspire other states to adopt their own. More than 200 million Americans are estimated to have the chemical compound in their drinking water, according to an analysis of federal water testing data by the Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit research and advocacy organization.

Until now, California combined its drinking water standard for chromium-6 with the less toxic trivalent chromium, an essential nutrient. California’s new limit on chromium-6 is 10 parts per billion — about 10 drops of water in a swimming pool.

“I know there’s mixed feelings about this decision today… that we should be at a lower standard,” board member Sean Maguire said before the vote. “But I do want to take a step back and look at California as compared to the rest of the nation, and I think here we are actually leading the way.”

Community members and health advocates worry California’s limit doesn’t do enough to protect public health from the metal. They want the state to adopt a drinking water limit closer to the public health goal of 0.02 parts per billion, the level scientists have said does not pose significant health risks.

“This really leaves a lot of California communities unprotected from that really potent carcinogen,” said Tasha Stoiber, senior scientist with the Environmental Working Group.

The board is required by law to set a limit as close to the public health goal as is economically and technologically feasible.

Some public water providers warned that with the new standard customers will pay more for water and the financial burden will disproportionately fall on disadvantaged communities. And some chemical industry groups have said the limit is not based on the most recent science.

The new limit will cost public water systems $483,446 to $172.6 million annually to monitor and treat water exceeding the standard, according to state water board estimates.

Cástulo Estrada, board vice president of the Coachella Valley Water District and utilities manager for Coachella city, said the limit would have “unprecedented” impacts on residents and customers. He said all six of the city of Coachella’s wells have chromium-6 above 10 parts per billion and that installing technology to lower levels to the limit would cost an estimated $90 million. “That would increase monthly bills.”

Ana Maria Perez, a Monterey County resident, urged the board to set a lower limit that would protect communities with chronic water contamination. “We have been waiting for a chromium-6 limit that protects our health,” she said in Spanish. “It’s not fair that many people must get sick.”

Water providers will need to start testing for chromium-6, which is naturally occurring and produced in industrial processes, within six months of the effective date, anticipated in October. If water tests above the limit, they will need to submit a compliance plan within 90 days and comply within two to four years, depending on how many customers are served.

Chromium is naturally occurring in soil, plants, animals, rocks and more, and can leach from soil into groundwater. It comes in various forms, including chromium-6, and is used in electroplating, stainless steel production, leather tanning, textile manufacturing and wood preservation, which all can contribute to drinking water contamination, according to the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment.

While scientists have known for decades that inhaling chromium-6 can cause lung cancer, it was uncertain for a long time whether ingestion could cause cancer, too.

Studies by the National Toxicology Program changed that. Rodents that drank water with high levels of chromium–6 over two years developed intestinal and oral cancer, results showed.

Some researchers have criticized the studies, saying the chemical concentrations the rodents were given were thousands of times higher than what U.S. drinking water supplies would have.

The California environmental health hazard agency is updating its public health goal for hexavalent chromium, which was finalized in 2011 at 0.02 parts per billion. At that level, the lifetime risk for cancer is one-in-one-million, an amount generally accepted by health experts.

Some health advocates urged the board to wait to establish a limit until an updated public health goal is released. But some environmental justice nonprofits that favor a lower limit said the board should not wait longer.

With California’s new limit, the risk of cancer is 500 times greater than the public health goal. One person out of 2,000 exposed for 70 years to drinking water with 10 parts per billion of chromium-6 may experience cancer, according to a state water staff report.

Studies on the health impacts of ingesting chromium-6 through drinking water are limited, said Maria-Nefeli Georgaki, an environmental health specialist who has studied the health effects of ingesting chromium-6. But, she added, a maximum of 10 parts per billion is an important start that should then be “adjusted according to both the public health issues that arise, and the new research data, at specific regular intervals.”

Water staff must review standards every five years. But during Wednesday’s meeting, Darrin Polhemus, deputy director for the water board’s drinking water division, said they are constantly reviewing standards.

In 2014, the state adopted a limit of 10 parts per billion but it was overturned in 2017 for failing to consider whether the rule would be economically feasible.

The standard is the latest chapter in a decades-long fight to regulate the chemical that gained notoriety with the 2000 movie “Erin Brockovich,” which won Julia Roberts the Best Actress Oscar. In the 1990s, Brockovich helped investigate groundwater contaminated with chromium-6 that was sickening a Southern California community. Residents eventually won a $333 million settlement with Pacific Gas & Electric Co. for contaminating their water.

———

The Associated Press receives support from the Walton Family Foundation for coverage of water and environmental policy. The AP is solely responsible for all content. For all of AP’s environmental coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/climate-and-environment.

The Gophers men’s basketball team netted a big rebounder in the NCAA transfer portal Wednesday.

Canisius forward Frank Mitchell committed to Minnesota after visiting the U campus early this week.

In the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, the 6-foot-8, 240-pound junior was fourth in Division I last season with 11.6 rebounds per game. The second-team all-MAAC honoree from Toronto averaged a double-double a year ago, along with 12.1 points across 31 games.

The Gophers are in need of multiple post players, primarily with the outgoing transfer of rising junior center Pharrel Payne. Minnesota now has at least four open scholarships this spring.

Against high-major competition last season, Mitchell had 12 points and nine rebounds in two different games against Syracuse and Pittsburgh. Head coach Ben Johnson previously said he looked at rebounding numbers translating for other incoming transfers.

Mitchell didn’t start competitive basketball until age 18 and played the 2021-22 season at Humber College in Toronto. He practiced with the Canisius team a year ago but sat out due to transfer rules, per his team bio.

Related Articles

Breakdown of the current Gophers men’s basketball roster

Gophers forward Parker Fox will return for 2024-25 season

Gophers’ Cam Christie to explore NBA while keeping college eligibility

Dawson Garcia announces he will return to Gophers men’s basketball next season

Gophers men’s basketball coach Ben Johnson opens up about transfer portal

Nicole Miller has a ready answer when she’s asked during job interviews to explain a difficult time in her career.

Miller was serving as city clerk of St. Anthony Village in July 2016 when St. Anthony police officer Jeronimo Yanez fatally shot Philando Castile during a traffic stop in Falcon Heights.

Nicole Miller (Courtesy photo)

“I can speak to that time, mostly in regard to communications,” Miller said. “It was a challenging time for our community and staff. I am proud of how, with the support of our council, staff was able to improve upon providing transparent communications and sharing the good stories of St. Anthony.”

Miller, 42, who most recently served as assistant city manager in St. Anthony, is the new city administrator in Lake Elmo. The Lake Elmo City Council on Tuesday night approved her contract and agreed to pay Miller a salary of $151,126 a year. She starts June 3.

“I was looking for a community that I felt would be a good fit with my skills,” said Miller, who has a background in strategic planning and communication. “I’m looking forward to being part of the team by understanding the council’s goals and supporting staff with implementation to achieve those goals. I’m very interested in community engagement and building trust with the community, and I’m looking forward to learning about the city operations and getting out in the community and building relationships.”

Miller started at St. Anthony Village as city clerk in 2015 and was later promoted to administrative services coordinator, assistant to the city manager and then, earlier this year, to assistant city manager. Prior to that, she worked in the private sector and as administrative assistant to the city administrator in Wyoming, Minn.

She also has been a paid, on-call firefighter for the city of North St. Paul and worked as a senior court clerk for Hennepin and Ramsey County District Courts.

Miller’s first experience working in city government was in 2007 when she worked as an intern at Oak Park Heights City Hall and Bayport City Hall.

“What really stuck with me was the ability to serve residents and to help them when they came in – in a meaningful way,” she said. “Even if it was just letting them know where to drop their utility bill payments, it was very rewarding. I liked being able to interact with people and be part of the community and make it better.”

Miller, of Wyoming, has a master’s degree in public administration from Hamline University and a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Metropolitan State University in St. Paul.

She and her husband, Randy Miller, who serves as public works supervisor for North St. Paul, have three children.

Twenty-five applicants applied for the job, and Miller was one of three finalists. The others were Renae Fry, former city administrator in North Branch, and former administrative coordinator in Sauk County, Wis., and John Young, tribal administrator of the Lac du Flambeau Tribe in Lac du Flambeau, Wis.

Former Lake Elmo City Administrator Kristina Handt was let go in November. She is now interim administrator in Forest Lake.

City officials have asked Interim City Administrator Clark Schroeder to stay on for a few weeks after Miller starts in order for there to be a few weeks of overlap, Schroeder said.

Related Articles

Sentencing set for Nicolae Miu in fatal stabbing of Stillwater teen on Apple River

In new Marine on St. Croix studio, artists Emily Anderson and Katy Helen aim to connect with nature — and neighbors

Wadena man gets 14 years for killing Maplewood woman, 80, while fleeing Oakdale police

Chef-driven eatery opens in former No Neck Tony’s in Lake Elmo

‘Justice for Isaac,’ teen’s parents say after Nicolae Miu found guilty in Apple River homicide

By TRAVIS LOLLER (Associated Press)

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A Tennessee judge on Wednesday seemed ready to agree with an attorney for Nashville police that the writings of a school shooter could be released as public record once the investigation is officially closed.

But the parents of children at the Covenant School added an extra twist to an already complicated case by asserting that they have gained legal ownership of the writings from the shooter’s parents and now hold the copyright.

None of the eight attorneys arguing before Davidson County Chancery Court Judge I’Ashea Myles during a two-day hearing claimed to be a copyright expert. Their answers to Myles’ pointed questions about the interplay of federal copyright protections and the Tennessee Public Records Act seemed at times only to muddy the waters further.

In the end, Myles said she will write an order outlining specific questions she wants them to address. Only after that will she rule on when, if ever, the writings can be released to the public.

Police have said the writings that they collected as part of their investigation into the March 27, 2023, shooting at the Covenant School that killed three 9-year-old children and three adult staff members are public records. However, they have said they cannot be released until their investigation is concluded.

Those asking that the writings be released immediately include news outlets, a Tennessee state senator, a gun-rights group and a law enforcement nonprofit. They argue that the open investigation is a formality at this point. The shooter was killed by police at the scene, and no other suspects have been identified.

Meanwhile, three other groups that have been allowed to intervene in the case argued that none of the writings should ever be released.

In addition to the copyright issues, attorneys representing the Covenant parents, the Covenant School and the Covenant Presbyterian Church presented a united front in arguing that the writings fall under a Tennessee law that protects the privacy of information, records and plans related to school security. Giving the law the broadest possible reading, the writings could inspire copycats and therefore threaten Covenant’s security, they argued.

Myles seemed to take exception to that interpretation.

“Right now, you’re asking me to adopt an interpretation of this statute that information written in a journal should be construed as a plan related to school security,” she said. She noted that any decision she makes is sure to be appealed and will have to survive the scrutiny of a higher court.

Eric Osborne, the parents’ attorney, had yet another reason to keep the writings secret. All of the children of Covenant School are victims under the Tennessee Constitution and have a right to be free from abuse, harassment and intimidation. Releasing the writings publicly could harm the children and would violate the law, he argued.

Myles again pushed back on such a broad approach.

“Is ‘harm’ synonymous with harassment, intimidation and abuse?” she asked. “You’re asking this court to perhaps create new law.”

Myles offered the example of a victim undergoing cross-examination in a criminal trial. It might be upsetting, but it is not a violation of their constitutional rights, she said.

Myles added that she reads the law to protect victims during the pendency of criminal justice proceedings. “To say it is in perpetuity, after the investigation is closed — I don’t see it,” she told Osborne.

He replied that there is no expiration. “Once you are involved in the criminal justice system, you have the constitutional rights that Tennesseans have given to all victims,” Osborne said.

Myles then asked whether there might be some parents at the school who want the writings released. “You represent your clients’ interests. What you are asking the court to do puts a bar on what they want. Are you elevating one group of parents over another?” she said.

Osborne said that 103 of the 112 families with children at the school at the time of the March 27, 2023, attack have signed on to their position that the writings should be suppressed.

At the end of the hearing, Myles made clear that the decision was a difficult one.

“Before I’m a chancellor, I’m a human,” she said. “I’m also a mom.”

Although her “heart grieves” for the children, Myles said she has to put emotion aside. “I have to take how I feel out of it. I have to interpret the law as written by the legislature,” she said.