The chemicals studied have caused serious groundwater contamination both in Southern California and throughout the United States. Two of them are considered major contributors to depletion of the ozone layer, and three are known carcinogens.
Source reduction can be the easiest answer for everyone.
Metropolitan general manager Carl Boronkay said halogenated solvents have been widely used in industry for more than two decades and have resulted in widespread groundwater contamination. The unused capacity of these vast underground reservoirs is an essential element in Metropolitan's water management plans. The report, completed by the Pasadena-based Jacobs Engineering Group, Inc., details research obtained from hundreds of industrial and commercial facilities, from dry cleaners to aerospace manufacturers. Cooperative research by a major water utility and an environmental advocacy group was seen as highly unusual at the time. Through its 27 member public agencies, Metropolitan provides nearly 60 percent of the water used by more than 15 million Southern Californians in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernandino, San Diego and Ventura counties.