State health officials are considering a proposal that would have Rancho Cordova residents relying for the first time on treatment technologies to remove rocket fuel chemicals from their drinking water.

The proposed change in contaminant cleanup strategy comes as concentrations of chemicals are creeping up in several Rancho Cordova drinking-water wells.

The fixes, however, are expected to be completed before the contamination reaches unsafe levels, utility and state officials said.

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The contaminants are perchlorate, an oxidizing component of solid rocket propellant known to cause thyroid disorders and NDMA -- n-nitro-sodimethylamine -- a "probable" cancer-causing combustion product of liquid rocket fuel, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

The chemicals are linked to historic disposal practices at Aerojet. In the 1950s through 1970s, the defense contractor disposed of residual rocket fuel and metal-cleaning solvents in unlined open pits, allowing the wastes to seep through the soil and into the groundwater tapped for Rancho Cordova homes.

The most pervasive Aerojet pollutant is trichloroethylene (TCE), an industrial solvent that has been linked to brain damage, liver cancer, skin diseases and immune disorders.