Bottled water study - Variety of contaminants

Tip of the hat to Jen Giroux for this story.

Bottled water has contaminants too, U.S. study finds

Tests on leading brands of bottled water turned up a variety of contaminants, including cancer-linked chemicals three times higher than California's health standard, according to a study released Wednesday by an environmental advocacy group.

The findings challenge the popular impression - and marketing pitch - that bottled water is purer than tap water, the researchers say...

However, all the brands met federal health standards for drinking water. And most of the detected contaminants are common in tap water, too.

Lab tests detected 38 chemicals in 10 brands, with an average of eight contaminants found in each kind of bottled water. Tests showed coliform bacteria, caffeine, the pain reliever acetaminophen, fertilizer, solvents, plastic-making chemicals and the radioactive element strontium...

The researchers also said the Wal-Mart brand exceeded California's limit by five times for a second chlorine byproduct, bromodichloromethane.

The Environmental Working Group said it notified California's attorney general of its intent to sue Wal-Mart. The group wants the company to label its bottles in California with a warning of cancer-causing chemicals. Wal-Mart did not respond to a request for comment.

There was also a recent article brought to my attention by a couple of people about possible dangers in tap water from chemicals. The Canadian government is supposed to be looking for a company that can do research and testing to see the extent of the problem. OPSEU has installed filters on select taps in most of its offices.

Feds to test taps for cancer contaminants

The federal government is ordering tests of Canada's drinking water over concerns it may contain contaminants thought to raise the risk of cancer and other health problems.

Health Canada is now seeking a contractor to determine if the contaminants - known as disinfection byproducts - flow from the country's taps.

Water-treatment plants have long used disinfectants such as chlorine and ozone to eliminate bacteria from drinking water. But in the 1970s, scientists discovered the disinfectants react with organic materials in untreated water, such as decaying vegetation, to form the byproducts.

There are hundreds of byproducts. Some of the more common ones are trihalomethanes, haloacetic acids, bromate and chlorite...

Last May, the Canadian Medical Association Journal reported there were 1,760 boil-water advisories across the country - excluding those for 93 First Nations.