Contrary to popular opinion, arsenic is an element, a natural material found in the soil almost everywhere -- to varying degrees. Check your periodic table for details.
"Industrial pollution" has nothing to do with it.
The Clinton administration arbitrarily reduced the standard for arsenic in water supplies from like 8 to 4 parts per billion. Despite there being any evidence that any American had suffered any damage whatsoever -- much less death -- from arsenic in the water supply.
As a consequence, several small towns in North Dakota and South Dakota had to completely re-work their water treatment plants -- at the cost of millions of dollars. Again, without any individual in those towns having ever suffered any ill effects attributable to arsenic.
While this finding could have a huge impact on public health in places like Bangladesh, its application is completely unneccessary in the USA -- unless some town in the Dakotas is in the market for a replacement water treatment plant.
The enviro-whackos will, of course, have a different opinion...
I know someone who’s naturapath solved her carpal tunnel syndrome problem.....by ADDING arsenic to her diet....because they said there was no longer enough in the water!
The problem is that zero keeps shifting. These idiots never heard of hormesis. Yet, they delight in lowering limits only to look good or keep their bureaucrats busy.
HUD did the same thing with lead levels in children. The numbers had dropped so quickly that they arbitrarily lowered the acceptable amount by half. Suddenly, there was an uptick in children with lead “poisoning”.