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State Health Agency Faces Criticism for Not Ensuring Water Was Safe to Drink

Posted on: Tuesday, 11 October 2005, 21:00 CDT

By Sammy Fretwell, The State, Columbia, S.C.

Oct. 11--Gov. Mark Sanford's office and key Midlands legislators criticized the state health department Monday for failing to protect a neighborhood's water supply from poisonous metals since the 1980s.

Sanford's office used the difficulties at Franklin Park, near Columbia, to champion his push to make the Department of Health and Environmental Control a Cabinet-level agency directly under the governor's control.

Spokesman Joel Sawyer said that would make DHEC more accountable; it is part of a broader plan to give the governor more authority.

"Clean, safe drinking water is one of the most basic components of quality of life," Sawyer said. "Clearly, DHEC should have done more, sooner, to correct this situation."

Rep. Joe Neal, D-Richland, and Democratic Sens. Darrell Jackson and Phil Leventis didn't embrace the restructuring idea, but said the Legislature needs to tighten state laws and provide more money to prevent long-standing water quality problems in neighborhoods like Franklin Park.

Neal, who represents Franklin Park residents, said he would introduce legislation in January to force stronger action by DHEC. He wants to split DHEC into a health department and an environmental agency. That, he said, would force better checks and balances.

"We need to really re-evaluate how DHEC does business," he said. "We need to refocus the agency."

DHEC, citing public health concerns, told the Franklin Park community's water system 20 years ago to treat the water to keep lead out. But despite years of critical reports and orders to fix the problem, the agency never forced changes at Franklin Park.

The State newspaper reported Sunday that residents who have drunk the water for years are registering higher-than-average levels of lead in their blood. A 4-year-old boy has had lead poisoning and can't talk in sentences.

Lead can cause brain damage and delayed speech in children and can contribute to kidney failure and hypertension in adults.

In addition to Franklin Park, other small utilities across South Carolina have failed to monitor for lead and keep it out of water despite DHEC's orders to do so, the newspaper has found.

DHEC spokesman Thom Berry declined comment Monday on whether the agency needs more authority to protect small communities served by failing water systems. The agency approved treatment for the Franklin Park drinking water Friday.

But a number of ideas surfaced for ensuring drinking water problems are fixed quickly. They all would require legislation:

--Creating a special "superfund" to fix failing private water and sewer systems if the owners don't comply with agency orders. The state could pay to stabilize a water system, for instance, while it battles the owner in court. The state later could bill the owner for the cost once the dispute is resolved.

--Requiring private water and sewer companies to post insurance, letters of credit and other financial guarantees to pay for improvements if the companies don't promptly fix the problems. The state requires bonds but allows small utility executives to pledge their personal worth -- which is difficult to collect.

--Requiring DHEC to notify every citizen whose home has elevated levels of lead in the water during government-required testing. That is not required by state law, although DHEC says it tries to inform people anyway.

--Changing state law so private utilities could get government safe-drinking water loans to fix failing systems. Only publicly owned water systems, such as those owned by cities, can get the funds, state officials have said.

--Giving DHEC more authority -- and encouraging it to use that authority -- for criminal investigations when utilities don't obey repeated agency requests.

Neal said he would introduce legislation calling for the breakup of DHEC in January, as well as a bill to "give DHEC more teeth." Jackson and Leventis said they would work with Neal.

Whether any of the ideas get through will take work, Jackson and Leventis said. The Legislature increasingly has taken a dim view of DHEC regulation. But both said it's worth the effort.

"We've got to change our attitude about what and who is to be protected," Leventis said.

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To see more of The State, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.thestate.com.

Copyright (c) 2005, The State, Columbia, S.C.

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Source: The State (Columbia, S.C.)

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