How Low Can We Go?

摘要

Although this title might sound a little bit like a limbo contest, the intent of this column is to start some thinking about how low we can go with drinking water standards. The US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) currently has 91 drinking water standards, and a review of how all of the current standards are reported yields some insights on their potential downward trend. New and improved analytical methods continue to drive down detection limits. In some cases, lower detection limits can find a regulated chemical in drinking water that may never have been found with older analytical methods. Detection in drinking water of both currently regulated and new and emerging chemicals raises concern about potential adverse health effects.