Fact check: False claim 'toxic' levels of aluminum found at Mt. Shasta, California

Isabella Fertel, USA TODAY
·6 min read

The claim: 'Toxic' levels of aluminum found at Mt. Shasta due to 'geoengineering'

A March 20 Instagram post (direct link, archived link) includes footage from a 2014 public meeting in Shasta County, California.

"Toxic levels of aluminum are being found at elevated locations like Mt. Shasta thanks to geoengineering," reads on-screen text in the video.

The post was liked more than 2,000 times in less than a month. Another version of the post featuring the same video and text is circulating on Instagram.

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Our rating: False

Testing of multiple water sources in the Mt. Shasta area – both in 2014 and now – found safe levels of aluminum, based on Environmental Protection Agency and California state standards. Geological experts say aluminum is abundant in the Earth's crust and that the soil in the Mt. Shasta region naturally has higher levels. There is no evidence the aluminum levels are connected to geoengineering.

State water tests show safe levels of aluminum in Mt. Shasta water

The video clips show a number of citizens voicing their alarm over "chemtrails" and geoengineering during the public comment section of a July 15, 2014, meeting of the Shasta County Board of Supervisors.

Some of the speakers in the video claim that abnormally high aluminum levels have been found in the air, rainwater and snow around Mt. Shasta, but they are not precise about what testing they're referring to.

But these claims tie to baseless conspiracy theories, and an array of tests show no such toxicity at that time – or now.

Water containing more than 1,000 micrograms of aluminum per liter is considered unsafe to consume or use, according to California safe drinking water laws.

Water containing more than 200 micrograms per liter may have an unusual taste or smell but is safe to consume, according to federal drinking water standards set by the Environmental Protection Agency.

The California State Water Resources Control Board tests of Mt. Shasta's drinking water in 2009 and 2018 both reported an aluminum level of 50 micrograms per liter.

The tests of the Mt. Shasta Wastewater Treatment Plant's treated wastewater discharge in 2014 found aluminum levels ranging from 16 to 437 micrograms.

While the Control Board does not test levels of contaminants present in snow, the composition of the water in Lake Siskiyou reflects snowmelt in the area, according to Edward Ortiz, a spokesperson for the board. The tests of Lake Siskiyou taken upstream from where the treatment plant discharges water in 2014 found aluminum levels ranging from 29 to 43 micrograms.

Regular testing of these water sources continues to show safe levels of aluminum, according to Ortiz.

"The State Water Resources Control Board is unaware of any data that shows elevated levels of aluminum in water in the Mt. Shasta area," Ortiz said in an email. "We pulled some basic data from drinking water source water, lake water and the city’s wastewater treatment plant discharge and didn’t see any evidence of elevated aluminum or trends in concentrations."

One test at the Lake Siskiyou location in March 2016 found 1,240 micrograms of aluminum per liter. But Ortiz called that test an "outlier" and noted that a "background sample" collected at the same site several weeks prior found 98 micrograms per liter. The most recent testing at this location in April 2021 found 94 micrograms per liter.

In summer months, the Mt. Shasta Wastewater Plant utilizes aluminum salts to help remove algae from wastewater during the treatment process, according to a plant operator. The samples were taken when the chemical was not in use, the operator said in an email.

The U.S. Geological Survey tested more than 4,000 soil samples from around the continental U.S. Their examination of the soil found that California has naturally high occurring levels of aluminum, with much of the soil in the state exceeding 5% aluminum by weight. The soil around Mt. Shasta was found to have more than 7% aluminum by weight.

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"The geologically-young volcanic rocks in the Mt. Shasta region are known to have relatively higher, naturally occurring, levels of metals such as aluminum, barium and strontium," Ruth Esperance, public affairs officer for the Shasta-Trinity National Forest, said in an email.

Although aluminum is more abundant in California soil than in other places, the aluminum-heavy soil is not dangerous or toxic, according to Charles Alpers, a research chemist at the U.S. Geological Survey.

Geoengineering technologies are still being developed, not in widespread use

The posts mention geoengineering, which refers to a number of emerging climate intervention technologies that could manipulate the atmosphere to mitigate the effects of climate change.

But these technologies are not responsible for the aluminum found in the ground and water around Mt. Shasta, or anywhere else for that matter.

Climate intervention technologies are still being developed and studied, Alan Robock, a climate science professor at Rutgers University, previously told USA TODAY. Robock and other climate scientists previously told USA TODAY they were not aware of any significant geoengineering experiments or operations.

There are two broad categories of climate intervention technologies being researched. Solar geoengineering seeks to modify the amount of solar radiation absorbed and released by the atmosphere, while carbon geoengineering aims to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

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The post also references chemtrails, appearing to conflate geoengineering technologies with the "chemtrails" conspiracy theory, which baselessly claims that governments and other nefarious actors are secretly adding toxic chemicals to the atmosphere. USA TODAY and other outlets have repeatedly debunked claims purporting to prove chemtrails exist.

USA TODAY reached out to the social media users who shared the post for comment.

Our sources:

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fact check: False claim of 'toxic' aluminum levels at Mt. Shasta