They want to hear concerns from residents who have been drinking water supplied by public utilities in Lake Mary, Sanford and northwest Seminole County. Groundwater in these areas has been contaminated with 1,4-dioxane, an industrial solvent classified as a likely carcinogen by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
"I want to find out: what are the concerns of the people and what do they want us, as the Department of Environmental Health Sciences, to do to address their concerns?" said Vasiliou, who will lead Wednesday's meeting. This concentration equates to an estimated 1-in-a-million increased risk of cancer if consumed for a lifetime. Florida has also chosen to issue an advisory level of 0.35 ppb, though the limit is not enforced by the federal or state government.
"The Yale Superfund Research Center's potential undertaking of tap water research in Central Florida indicates a commitment to understanding and mitigating the risks of 1,4-dioxane in drinking water, a contaminant for which protective action is long overdue.
Yale scientists at the center aim to answer questions such as how the chemical triggers the development of cancer, how it may interact with other substances commonly found in the environment, and whether biomarkers can identify whether someone was previously exposed to dioxane. As of now, 1,4-dioxane is only detectable when it's in the human body, and it leaves within a matter of days, which makes it difficult to link health issues to past exposures.