The EPA’s struggle to limit drinking water contaminants
[A]t least once a year since 2019, the Smithwick Mills water system, which serves about 200 residents in [Texas], has reported high levels of the synthetic chemical 1,2,3-trichloropropane … Water quality tests from the Smithwick Mills utility have revealed an average TCP level of 410 parts per trillion over the past four years — more than 80 times what would be allowed in California. But the utility hasn’t taken any action. It doesn’t have to. The chemical isn’t regulated in drinking water by the EPA or the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, which means neither agency has ever set a maximum allowable level of TCP.