12 June 2023
I have spent my entire adult life working to protect public health by advocating for the safe, clean drinking water we all need and deserve, and I will continue to fight against industrial pollution that results in chemical contamination of our water. I will also continue to fight for strong, sound policies to effectively remove waterborne bacteria and pathogens from our water.
One major area that I have been focused on is addressing Legionnaires’ disease, a bacterial pneumonia caused by a waterborne bacteria known as legionella. I have traveled to many states and cities talking to health and environment officials, lawmakers and other officials about steps they must take to ensure we are properly managing our water to prevent this disease.
During the past four decades, Legionnaires’ efforts have been almost exclusively focused on managing this disease after it has already infected the water in our hospitals, our workplaces, and other places we frequent. This approach simply is not working, and the case rates prove it.
As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has pointed out, rates of Legionnaires’ cases have increased 500 percent in the past decade alone. Also, the CDC rightly points out that 96 percent of all Legionnaires’ cases are actually single or sporadic in nature, not tied to outbreaks, which studies have identified home exposures as a primary source. Yet no one is paying attention to the vast majority of Legionnaires’ disease cases.
Unfortunately, cottage industries have formed around this approach and are working hard to reinforce this “downstream” approach because they profit from building water testing or want to sell their standards or certification programs. What I see is commercial interests who are monetizing this disease under the guise of public health and prevention. Yet we have not even made a dent in effective prevention and meanwhile individuals continue to fall victim to this serious disease which is fatal for 10 percent of those who get it.
We must stop this. We must do better. Nevadans deserve this. For this reason, I opposed AB263, because it is another iteration of the same failed policies of the past. The legislation lines the pockets of those specializing in testing and certification but does not address the problem at its root cause. AB263 will not prevent Legionnaires’ disease. It is redundant of federal regulations on health facilities and adds requirements to serve business interests to mandate routine testing and training but fails to recognize the primary role that our water system plays in fostering the growth and proliferation of legionella bacteria.
Similar legislation in New York has not only failed to reduce cases of Legionnaires’ disease, but in fact Legionnaires’ cases doubled two years after full implementation there – while costing hundreds of millions per year for compliance and enforcement. Such resources could be far better spent on true prevention efforts.
Importantly, once the science and data were put on the table, and the disinformation was dispelled, the proprietary interests went underground. Nevada legislators came to understand the facts and made the right decision to reject this ineffective bill.
Moving forward, let’s work together to make a strong and meaningful law to truly tackle Legionnaires’ disease through effective water quality efforts that prioritize the upstream root causes that arguably drive 100 percent of cases. This means stopping the bacteria at its source so we can prevent it rather than simply trying to react to it once it has infected our drinking water. In short, let’s be proactive rather than reactive.
Erin Brockovich, as a clerk for attorney Ed Masry, was instrumental in building a case against Pacific Gas & Electric Co. in 1993 involving groundwater contamination in Hinkley, California. She is also the author of Superman’s Not Coming, Our National Water Crisis and What WE THE PEOPLE Can Do About It.
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