scholarly journals Review of perchlorate occurrence in large public drinking water systems in the United States of America

2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 681-694
Author(s):  
Steven J. Luis ◽  
Elizabeth A. Miesner ◽  
Clarissa L. Enslin ◽  
Keith Heidecorn
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Drinking Water ◽  
Environmental Protection Agency ◽  
The United States ◽  
Water Systems ◽  
Contaminant Monitoring ◽  
Public Drinking Water ◽  
Regulatory Bodies ◽  
Public Drinking

Abstract When deciding whether or not to regulate a chemical, regulatory bodies often evaluate the degree to which the public may be exposed by evaluating the chemical's occurrence in food and drinking water. As part of its decision-making process, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) evaluated the occurrence of perchlorate in public drinking water by sampling public water systems (PWSs) as part of the first implementation of the Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 1) between 2001 and 2005. The objective of this paper is to evaluate the current representativeness of the UCMR 1 dataset. To achieve this objective, publicly available sources were searched to obtain updated perchlorate data for the majority of large PWSs with perchlorate detections under UCMR 1. Comparison of the updated and UCMR 1 perchlorate datasets shows that the UCMR 1 dataset is no longer representative because the extent and degree of occurrence has decreased since implementation of UCMR 1. Given this finding, it seems appropriate for regulatory bodies engaged in decision-making processes over several years to periodically re-evaluate the conditions that prompted the regulatory effort, thereby ensuring that rules and regulations address actual conditions of concern.

scholarly journals A review of household drinking water intervention trials and an approach to the estimation of endemic waterborne gastroenteritis in the United States

2006 ◽  
Vol 4 (S2) ◽  
pp. 71-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
John M. Colford ◽  
Sharon Roy ◽  
Michael J. Beach ◽  
Allen Hightower ◽  
Susan E. Shaw ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Drinking Water ◽  
The United States ◽  
Water Systems ◽  
Epidemiologic Studies ◽  
Other Information ◽  
Public Drinking Water ◽  
Public Drinking ◽  
Intervention Trials ◽  
Drinking Water Systems

The incidence of acute gastrointestinal illness (AGI) attributable to public drinking water systems in the United States cannot be directly measured but must be estimated based on epidemiologic studies and other information. The randomized trial is one study design used to evaluate risks attributable to drinking water. In this paper, we review all published randomized trials of drinking water interventions in industrialized countries conducted among general immunocompetent populations. We then present an approach to estimating the incidence (number of cases) of AGI attributable annually to drinking water. To develop a national estimate, we integrate trial results with the estimated incidence of AGI using necessary assumptions about the estimated number of residents consuming different sources of drinking water and the relative quality of the water sources under different scenarios. Using this approach we estimate there to be 4.26–11.69 million cases of AGI annually attributable to public drinking water systems in the United States. We believe this preliminary estimate should be updated as new data become available.

Associations of Community Water Lead Concentrations with Hemoglobin Concentrations and Erythropoietin-Stimulating Agent Use among Patients with Advanced CKD

2021 ◽  
pp. ASN.2020091281
Author(s):  
John Danziger ◽  
Kenneth J. Mukamal ◽  
Eric Weinhandl
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Drinking Water ◽  
Kidney Disease ◽  
The United States ◽  
Water Systems ◽  
Adverse Outcomes ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Community Water Systems ◽  
Community Water ◽  
Lead Levels

BackgroundAlthough patients with kidney disease may be particularly susceptible to the adverse health effects associated with lead exposure, whether levels of lead found commonly in drinking water are associated with adverse outcomes in patients with ESKD is not known.MethodsTo investigate associations of lead in community water systems with hemoglobin concentrations and erythropoietin stimulating agent (ESA) use among incident patients with ESKD, we merged data from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Safe Drinking Water Information System (documenting average 90th percentile lead concentrations in community water systems during 5 years before dialysis initiation, according to city of residence) with patient-level data from the United States Renal Data System.ResultsAmong 597,968 patients initiating dialysis in the United States in 2005 through 2017, those in cities with detectable lead levels in community water had significantly lower pre-ESKD hemoglobin concentrations and more ESA use per 0.01 mg/L increase in 90th percentile water lead. Findings were similar for the 208,912 patients with data from the first month of ESKD therapy, with lower hemoglobin and higher ESA use per 0.01 mg/L higher lead concentration. These associations were observed at lead levels below the EPA threshold (0.015 mg/L) that mandates regulatory action. We also observed environmental inequities, finding significantly higher water lead levels and slower declines over time among Black versus White patients.ConclusionsThis first nationwide analysis linking EPA water supply records to patient data shows that even low levels of lead that are commonly encountered in community water systems throughout the United States are associated with lower hemoglobin levels and higher ESA use among patients with advanced kidney disease.

scholarly journals An approach for developing a national estimate of waterborne disease due to drinking water and a national estimate model application

2006 ◽  
Vol 4 (S2) ◽  
pp. 201-240 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Messner ◽  
Susan Shaw ◽  
Stig Regli ◽  
Ken Rotert ◽  
Valerie Blank ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Environmental Protection Agency ◽  
Water System ◽  
Credible Interval ◽  
The United States ◽  
Water Systems ◽  
Epidemiologic Studies ◽  
Incidence Rates ◽  
Waterborne Disease ◽  
Public Water Systems

In this paper, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) presents an approach and a national estimate of drinking water related endemic acute gastrointestinal illness (AGI) that uses information from epidemiologic studies. There have been a limited number of epidemiologic studies that have measured waterborne disease occurrence in the United States. For this analysis, we assume that certain unknown incidence of AGI in each public drinking water system is due to drinking water and that a statistical distribution of the different incidence rates for the population served by each system can be estimated to inform a mean national estimate of AGI illness due to drinking water. Data from public water systems suggest that the incidence rate of AGI due to drinking water may vary by several orders of magnitude. In addition, data from epidemiologic studies show AGI incidence due to drinking water ranging from essentially none (or less than the study detection level) to a rate of 0.26 cases per person-year. Considering these two perspectives collectively, and associated uncertainties, EPA has developed an analytical approach and model for generating a national estimate of annual AGI illness due to drinking water. EPA developed a national estimate of waterborne disease to address, in part, the 1996 Safe Drinking Water Act Amendments. The national estimate uses best available science, but also recognizes gaps in the data to support some of the model assumptions and uncertainties in the estimate. Based on the model presented, EPA estimates a mean incidence of AGI attributable to drinking water of 0.06 cases per year (with a 95% credible interval of 0.02–0.12). The mean estimate represents approximately 8.5% of cases of AGI illness due to all causes among the population served by community water systems. The estimated incidence translates to 16.4 million cases/year among the same population. The estimate illustrates the potential usefulness and challenges of the approach, and provides a focus for discussions of data needs and future study designs. Areas of major uncertainty that currently limit the usefulness of the approach are discussed in the context of the estimate analysis.

Arsenic in drinking water-problems and solutions

1999 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
pp. 69-76 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Viraraghavan ◽  
K. S. Subramanian ◽  
J. A. Aruldoss
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Drinking Water ◽  
Ion Exchange ◽  
Environmental Protection Agency ◽  
The United States ◽  
Activated Alumina ◽  
Column Studies ◽  
Maximum Contaminant Level ◽  
Aluminum Salts ◽  
Contaminant Level

The current United States maximum contaminant level for arsenic in drinking water is set at 50 μg/l. Because of the cancer risks involved, Canada has already lowered the maximum contaminant level to 25 μg/l; the United States Environmental Protection Agency is reviewing the current allowable level for arsenic with a view of lowering it significantly. Various treatment methods have been adopted to remove arsenic from drinking water. These methods include 1) adsorption-coprecipitation using iron and aluminum salts, 2) adsorption on activated alumina, activated carbon, and activated bauxite, 3) reverse osmosis, 4) ion exchange and 5) oxidation followed by filtration. Because of the promise of oxidation-filtration systems, column studies were conducted at the University of Regina to examine oxidation with KMnO4 followed by filtration using manganese greensand and iron-oxide coated sand to examine the removal of arsenic from drinking water; these results were compared with the data from ion exchange studies. These studies demonstrated that As (III) could be reduced from 200 μg/l to below 25 μg/l by the manganese greensand system. In the case of manganese greensand filtration, addition of iron in the ratio of 20:1 was found necessary to achieve this removal.

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