Environmental Toxicology: a method for evaluating consumer product ingredient contributions to surface and drinking water: boron as a test case

摘要

Boron is a ubiquitous element that enters surface waters via two main routes, weathering of boron-containing rock (e.g., borosilicates) and release of boron in cleaning products through disposal to wastewater treatment systems. Recently, concentrations of boron deemed safe for humans and aquatic organisms, via drinking and surface water exposures, have been published. In comparison, however, little has been published regarding the concentrations and distribution of boron in surface waters. This manuscript describes the geographic distribution of boron in the U. S. and California and details a unique method for estimating the amount of boron in receiving waters from consumer product sources using ROUT, a novel deterministic U. S. -scale surface water modeling system, and the USEPA STORET database.