A well with increasing concentrations of the cancer causing pollutant Chromium, has been discovered earlier this year by water regulators. Lauri Kemper, assistant executive officer of the Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board, said and now more wells have been uncovered with elevated levels.
In the tiny desert town of Hinkley that was made famous by the movie,” Erin Brockvich’”starring Julia Roberts, a dramatic increase in the size of a toxic plume of chromium that has spread to multiple underground wells has been seen.
Pacific Gas & Electric was ordered to do additional groundwater monitoring near Hickley which is about 120 miles northeast of Los Angeles .Kemper said,” It is difficult to capture the contamination because of the widespread nature of the lower concentration of chromium.. In a court case that was first publicized in1996 about the contamination the PG&E settled with more than 600 residences for $333 million. The sick residents blamed the contaminated water for crippling health problems that include Hodgkin’s disease and breast cancer.
The problem was brought to light when Erin Brockovich, a legal assistant, uncovered the PG&E knowingly polluted the city’s water supply. The 2000 movie about the town’s water and health problems brought Julie Roberts an Academy Award
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