Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
By 2009, government scientists had evaluated 830 of the pollutants most frequently
found in water supplies. They discovered that while many chemicals are benign, some
are linked to serious diseases—including leukemia, brain and breast cancer, Parkinson's,
Alzheimer's, asthma, autism, and birth defects—even in small amounts. But, as of this
writing, the EPA has yet to add any of these chemicals to the list of ninety-one that are
restricted.
What's more, experts charge, the process by which EPA evaluates and restricts chem-
icals is flawed. Rather than classifying groups of chemicals, which would be efficient,
regulators assess them case by case, which is laborious and expensive. The technology
to evaluate chemicals by group has existed for years, but the funding, manpower, and
political will have not.
“We simply do not have the scientific capacity to test every individual chemical used
in the US,” Dr. Jefrey K. Griiths , associate professor of public health and of medicine
at Tuts University, who is an adviser to the EPA Drinking Water Committee, told Con-
gress in 2009. “This is disgraceful … the process for identifying pollutants is flawed….
We have institutionalized an approach … that, in my opinion, will not protect the public
unless it is changed…. We need a paradigm shift about water.”
“A SLEEPING GIANT”
As the US population ages, more people are using medications with greater frequency.
The pharmaceutical industry introduces new drugs every year; it is also pushing for the
use of old drugs in new ways and for the expansion of drug use by children. As a result,
increasing numbers of prescription drugs and common household health products are
being detected in our water supplies.
No government regulations limit the amount of pharmaceuticals allowed in drinking
water, and many public water systems have not been tested for them. Extrapolating
from those that have been tested, the US Geological Survey has estimated that 46 mil-
lion Americans drink water containing detectable amounts of pharmacological agents.
There is no conclusive evidence that such chemicals are harmful to humans, and the
EPA says that discharge of pharmaceuticals by manufacturing plants into wastewater
treatment plants is well controlled. But it also admits that it has no oversight of dis-
charges from individual homes or medical businesses.
That's one reason why a national association of wastewater agencies warns that
“pharmaceuticals are a potential sleeping giant.”
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