Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
being used to minimize the use of chlorine. But in the USA and Canada, chlorine
remains the most widely used method of disinfection of drinking water. Therefore,
it seems clear that (1) comprehensive toxicological evaluation of whole DBP
mixtures are necessary, and (2) greater emphasis must be placed on continuing to
reduce the allowable concentrations of all toxic halides in drinking water. As a
long-term policy, it would be sensible to follow the example of the European
countries that have completely eliminated the use of chlorine in drinking water.
In the past, the use of chlorine has been shown to have bene
tted large popu-
lations all over the world. For example, typhoid fever had killed about 25 out of
100,000 people in the US annually, a death rate close to that now associated with
automobile accidents. Today, typhoid fever has been virtually eliminated. But the
new evidence suggests grave long-term health risks associated with the use of
chlorine. Chapter
3
contains a review of drinking water treatment technologies,
which clearly shows that there are alternatives for disinfection that are cost-effec-
tive. Therefore, we can conclude that chlorination of drinking water is now an
obsolete technology, and it is high time that North America moved away from
chlorination and followed the example of the Netherlands, Denmark, and Germany.
References
Adams C, Timmons T, Seitz T, Lane J, Levotch S (2005) Trihalomethane and haloacetic acid
disinfection by-products in full-scale drinking water systems. J Environ Eng 131(4):526
534
Ashley D, Prah J (1997) Time dependence of blood concentrations during and after exposure to a
mixture of volatile organic compounds. Arch Environ Health 52(1):26
-
33 (An International
-
Journal)
Backer L, Ashley D, Bonin M, Cardinali F, Kieszak S, Wooten J (2000) Household exposure to
drinking water disinfection by-products: whole blood trihalomethane levels. J Expo Anal
Environ Epidemiol 10(4):321
326
Bove G, Rogerson P, Vena J (2007) Case control study of the geographic variability of exposure to
ij-healthgeographics.com/content/6/1/18
.
Accessed 9 May 2014
Cantor K, Hoover R, Hartge P, Mason T, Silverman D, Altman R et al (1987) Bladder cancer,
drinking water source, and tap water consumption: a case-control study. J Natl Cancer Inst 79
(6):1269
-
1279
Cantor K (1997) Drinking water and cancer. Cancer Causes Control 8(3):292
-
308
Calomiris J, Christman K (1998) How does chlorine added to drinking water kill bacteria and other
harmful organisms? Why doesn
-
it it harm us? Sci Am.
http://www.scienticamerican.com/
article/how-does-chlorine-added-t/
.
Accessed 11 June 2014
Copenhagen Post (2009)
http://www.cphpost.dk/news/local/87-local/45836-water-water-
everywhere-not-a-drop-of-chlorine-anywhere.html
.
Accessed 27 June 2009
Doyle T, Zheng W, Cerhan J, Hong C, Sellers T, Kushi L, Folsom A (1997) The association of
drinking water source and chlorination by-products with cancer incidence among postmen-
opausal women in Iowa: a prospective cohort study. Am J Public Health 87(7):1168
'
1176
Endocrine Disruptor Screening and Testing Advisory Committee (EDSTAC) (1998) Final Report.
Endocrine disruptor screening program, US Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.
C., USA
-
Search WWH ::
Custom Search