Max Baucus: “For most other health effects addressed the act, the Administrator has been able to identify a threshold for the health…”

“For most other health effects addressed the act, the Administrator has been able to identify a threshold for the health effect below which no adverse health effect is expected to occur from the presence of the contaminant in drinking water. These thresholds also reflect margins of safety and have been used as the health goal under the Safe Drinking Water Act. But the science underlying these decisions is not so precise as to define the exact point that separates safe drinking water from unsafe water. There is an area of uncertainty around any one of these estimates. The Administrator may be able to pick some other less stringent level that is also at a level where there is reasonable certainty of no harm. For the contaminants that are regulated for a health effect other than cancer, this amendment allows some flexibility to recognize this situation.”