Monday, March 10, 2008 A vast array of pharmaceuticals including antibiotics, anti-convulsants, mood stabilizers and sex hormones have been found in the drinking water supplies of at least 41 million Americans, an Associated Press investigation shows.
The concentrations of the pharmaceuticals are tiny, measured in quantities of parts per billion or trillion, far below the levels of a medical dose. Utilities insist that their water is safe. But the presence of so many prescription drugs and over-the-counter medicines like acetaminophen and ibuprofen in so much drinking water is heightening concerns among scientists about the possible long-term consequences to human health. During a five-month inquiry, the AP discovered that drugs have been detected in the drinking water supplies of 24 major metropolitan areas from southern California to northern New Jersey and from Detroit to Louisville, Ky. Austin was one of three metropolitan areas reporting that no such drugs had been detected in its water. Water providers rarely disclose results of pharmaceutical screenings unless pressed to do so, the AP found. How do the drugs get into the water? People take pills. Their bodies absorb some of the medication, but the rest passes through and is flushed down the toilet. The wastewater is treated before it is discharged into reservoirs, rivers or lakes. Then, some of the water is cleansed again at drinking water treatment plants and piped to consumers. But most treatments do not remove all drug residue. Waste from animals that had been given veterinary drugs also plays a role. Researchers do not yet understand what exact risks come with decades of persistent exposure to random combinations of low levels of pharmaceuticals. But recent studies, which have gone virtually unnoticed by the public, have found alarming effects on human cells and wildlife. "We recognize it is a growing concern, and we're taking it very seriously," said Benjamin Grumbles, assistant administrator for water at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Members of the AP National Investigative Team reviewed hundreds of scientific reports, analyzed federal drinking water databases, visited environmental study sites and treatment plants, and interviewed more than 230 officials, academics and scientists. They also surveyed the nation's 50 largest cities and a dozen other major water providers, as well as smaller community water providers in all 50 states. Here are some of the key test results obtained by the AP: Officials in Philadelphia said testing discovered 56 pharmaceuticals or byproducts in treated drinking water, including medicines for pain, infection, high cholesterol, asthma, epilepsy, mental illness and heart problems. Epilepsy and anxiety medications were detected in a portion of the treated drinking water for 18.5 million people in Southern California. Researchers at the U.S. Geological Survey analyzed a Passaic Valley Water Commission drinking water treatment plant, which serves 850,000 people in northern New Jersey, and found a metabolized angina medicine and the mood-stabilizing carbamazepine in drinking water. A sex hormone was detected in San Francisco's drinking water. The drinking water for Washington and surrounding areas tested positive for six pharmaceuticals. The federal government doesn't require any testing and hasn't set safety limits for drugs in water. Of the 62 major providers contacted, drinking water for only 28 was tested. Among the 34 that haven't tested their water: Houston, El Paso, Fort Worth, San Antonio, Chicago, Miami, Baltimore, Phoenix, Boston and New York City's Department of Environmental Protection, which delivers water to 9 million people. Some providers screen for only some pharmaceuticals. The AP's investigation also indicates that watersheds, the natural sources of most of the nation's water supply, are contaminated. Tests were conducted in the watersheds of 35 of the 62 major providers surveyed by the AP, and pharmaceuticals were detected in 28. However, officials in six of those 28 metropolitan areas said they did not go on to test their drinking water. In several cases, officials at municipal or regional water providers told the AP that pharmaceuticals had not been detected, but the AP obtained the results of tests conducted by independent researchers that showed otherwise. Of the 28 major metropolitan areas where tests were performed on drinking water supplies, only Albuquerque, N.M.; Austin; and Virginia Beach, Va., said tests were negative. The drinking water in Dallas has been tested, but officials are awaiting results. Arlington acknowledged that traces of a pharmaceutical were detected in its drinking water but cited post-9/11 security concerns in refusing to identify the drug. Charles Maddox, water regulatory manager for Austin Water Utility, said Austin's negative results are from a sample sent to the American Water Works Association Research Foundation several years ago. "We came back negative on a variety of compounds, including endocrine-disrupting compounds, herbicides and pharmaceutical products," Maddox said. Maddox said the reason for the negative results is hard to determine, but he thinks it may have to do with Austin's high-quality source of water from the Highland Lakes system and the fact that no major urban areas are upstream of the city's water supply. "We don't have any wastewater discharges upriver, either," Maddox said. But he added that he thinks Austin doesn't change the water quality for smaller cities downstream: "I suspect the cities downstream of us see similar water quality to what we see." The AP also contacted 52 small water providers across the country, including Denison and Kingsville in Texas, that serve communities with populations of about 25,000. All but one said their drinking water had not been screened for pharmaceuticals; officials in Emporia, Kan., refused to answer AP's questions, also citing post-9/11 issues. Rural consumers who draw water from wells aren't in the clear either, experts say. Even users of bottled water and home filtration systems don't necessarily avoid exposure. Bottlers, some of which simply repackage tap water, do not typically treat or test for pharmaceuticals, according to the industry's main trade group. The same goes for home filtration systems. Contamination is not confined to the U.S. More than 100 different pharmaceuticals have been detected in waterways across the world. Some drugs, including widely used cholesterol fighters, tranquilizers and epilepsy medications, resist modern drinking water and wastewater treatment processes. Plus, the EPA says there are no sewage treatment systems specifically engineered to remove pharmaceuticals. Recent laboratory research has found that small amounts of medication have affected human embryonic kidney cells, human blood cells and human breast cancer cells. The cancer cells proliferated too quickly, the kidney cells grew too slowly, and the blood cells showed biological activity associated with inflammation. Also, pharmaceuticals in waterways are damaging wildlife across the nation and around the globe, research shows. Many independent scientists are skeptical that trace concentrations will ultimately prove to be harmful to humans. There's growing concern in the scientific community, though, that certain drugs or combinations of drugs might harm humans over decades because water, unlike most specific foods, is consumed in sizable amounts every day. "We know we are being exposed to other people's drugs through our drinking water, and that can't be good," says Dr. David Carpenter, who directs the Institute for Health and the Environment of the State University of New York at Albany. Additional material from staff writer Patrick George. -- Nothing can stand in the way of the power of millions of voices calling for change - Barack Obama ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;160198600;22374440;w Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Community/message.cfm/messageid:256023 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/CF-Community/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=89.70.5
