they evacuated our building last week
last time it was anthrax
this time apparently a bomb in the mailroom,
terrorists?
this plus all the drugs they say is in our water
o and how bout that stock market
AP Probe Finds Drugs in Drinking Water
Sunday, March 09, 2008 5:03:50 PM
By JEFF DONN, MARTHA MENDOZA and JUSTIN PRITCHARD
A vast array of pharmaceuticals -- including antibiotics,
anti-convulsants,
mood stabilizers and *** hormones -- have been found in the drinking water
supplies of at least 41 million Americans, an Associated Press
investigation
shows.
To be sure, the concentrations of these pharmaceuticals are tiny, measured
in quantities of parts per billion or trillion, far below the levels of a
medical dose. Also, utilities insist their water is safe.
But the presence of so many prescription drugs -- and over-the-counter
medicines like acetaminophen and ibuprofen -- in so much of our drinking
water is heightening worries among scientists oflong-term consequences to
human health.
In the course of a five-month inquiry, the AP discovered that drugs have
been detected in the drinking water supplies of 24 major metropolitan
areas -- from Southern California to Northern New Jersey, from Detroit to
Louisville, Ky.
Water providers rarely disclose results of pharmaceutical screenings,
unless
pressed, the AP found. For example, the head of a group representing major
California suppliers said the public "doesn't know how to interpret the
information" and might be unduly alarmed.
How do the drugs get into the water?
People take pills. Their bodies absorb some of the medication, but the
rest
of it passes through and is flushed down the toilet. The wastewater is
treated before it is discharged into reservoirs, rivers or lakes. Then,
some
of the water is cleansed again at drinking water treatment plants and
piped
to consumers. But most treatments do not remove all drug residue.
|
