A new analysis by clean water advocate the Environmental Working Group has discovered 56 new contaminants in US drinking water. The most disturbing of these include pesticides, radioactive materials, and water disinfectant byproducts, the Guardian reported.
According to the NY Post, The substances are associated with a long list of side effects, including liver disease, cancer, and reproductive problems. According to TheGuardian, The revelation is part of an analysis of the nation’s water utilities’ contamination records by the Environmental Working Group, a clean water advocate that has now updated its database for the first time since 2019.
It found that the jump is partly driven by newly identified PFAS, a toxic class of “forever chemicals” that are widely used across dozens of industries and are thought to be contaminating drinking water for more than 100 million people. Pesticides, water disinfectant byproducts, and radioactive materials are among other substances identified by regulators.
Though the new contaminant list is disturbing, it would be much longer if regulators and utilities were properly monitoring the nation’s water supply, said the EWG senior scientist Tasha Stoiber. “It speaks to the fact that we don’t have nearly strong enough regulations in place to protect drinking water, and the regulation process is much too slow,” she said.
“We’re testing for things that are already in our drinking water after the fact … and we’re not keeping pace with these chemicals.” The list includes some substances that have been in production and used for years, but are only now being monitored by regulators as their links to health problems become clear. Other contaminants include those that industry is only beginning to use in larger quantities.
