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A Growing Problem The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) continues to update the Emerging Contaminants list for the United States. Our waterways have been identified as containing increasing levels of various pharmaceuticals (anti-depressants, synthetic hormones, antacids, etc.) and household products (shampoo, antibacterial soap, detergent, etc.). According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS) emerging contaminants are defined as any synthetic or naturally occurring chemical or microorganism that is not commonly monitored in the environment but has the potential to enter the environment and cause known or suspected adverse ecological and/or human health effects.
Studies are being conducted all over the United States to determine what emerging contaminants are in waterways, the distribution of these contaminants, and what adverse effects these contaminants are having on the environment. Currently, California State scientists are searching for 200 contaminants in mussels inhabiting San Francisco Bay. Mussels were chosen as research subjects because they filter a large amount of water as they feed on plankton leaving behind traces of contaminants. Mussels will be collected and tested at 80 different sites throughout California. Contaminants Produce Disturbing Effects Other aquatic life has been cluing scientists in on the problem of contaminants. In the Potomac River, which flows through Maryland, Washington, D.C., Virginia, and West Virginia, potential problems in the aquatic life are being discovered from emerging contaminants. The Potomac Conservancy’s third annual State of the Nation’s River report revealed that the river pollution was creating intersex fish. The contaminants being introduced into the Potomac River are causing fish to be born with both male and female reproductive parts and these intersex fish are unable to reproduce at all. The Potomac Conservancy scientists stated that the prevalence of the intersex condition was found in more than 80 percent of Potomac River fish studied. These endocrine disrupting substances (EDS) can mimic or block the work of natural hormones in the body. Emerging contaminants with EDS can cause mutations in amphibians and fish and have affected reproduction in fish and even humans. These emerging contaminants are finding their way into the nation’s drinking waters, causing concern for the human population as well. Most Wastewater Treatment Facilities (WWTFs) are not equipped to remove these contaminants from the wastewater and in many cases; the water is returned to rivers and eventually recollected, treated, and used as drinking water. With so many American’s taking prescription and non-prescription drugs, the drug concentrations are becoming higher and higher in wastewater. Even our shampoos and household cleaners are washing chemicals down the drain and into the wastewater. Even though the concentrations are still relatively low (based on parts per million or parts per billion) the adverse effects of these contaminants cannot be ignored. So what can Water Treatment Plants (WTP’s) and WWTF’s do to help reduce or treat the amounts of emerging contaminants that end up in our drinking water? The first step is to identify specific contaminants and EDS in your water/wastewater. A consulting engineering firm can assist you in this process. They can then present options to ensure your wastewater discharges and drinking water are at safe/acceptable levels. Treatment options might include membranes, granular activated carbon, and ultraviolet light disinfection. Treatment is only one part of a solution. Public education is necessary to help curb the amount of contaminants entering the wastewater system. Proper disposal of pharmaceuticals needs to be promoted, and the public needs to be encouraged not to flush their old and outdated pharmaceuticals down the toilet.
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