CHEMICALS IN DRINKING WATER CONT australia

MONOCHLORAMINE

Chloramines are formed as a result of the reaction between added chlorine and ammonia .

Monochloramine is used as a disinfectant for drinking water supplies and has the advantage of creating fewer by-products than when chlorine itself is used ( Chlorination results in the formation of trihalomethans (THMs) which are potentially hazardous).

While monochloramine generally produces lower concentration of THMs other by-products may be formed in small amounts such as halo ketones, chloropicrin, aldehydes and chlorophenols. In contrast, two by-products are formed at higher concentrations following chloroamination than chlorination: cyanogen chloride and N-nitrosodimethylamine.

Monochloramine is used as a disinfectant in some Australian reticulated supplies and concentrations up to 8 mg/L have been applied (but only in highly turbid supplies where it is difficult to maintain a residual without using a high initial dose).

In studies with rats it has been shown that monochloramine is readily absorbed and does not accumulate in tissues. It is metabolised rapidly to the chloride ion and excreted in urine. In mammals, no specific toxic effects have been reported for monochloramine from either short- or long-term studies. However monochloramine is toxic to fish.

Carcinogenicity studies have reported a slight increase in the incidence of mononuclear cell leukaemia in female rats exposed to monochloramine for 2 years, at doses of approximately 10 mg/kg bodyweight per day.

Acute haemolytic anaemia has been reported in haemodialysis patients when tap water containing chloramines was used for dialysis.

Monochloramine exhibited weak mutagenic activity in one test using bacteria but was negative in another test. It did not induce chromosome aberrations in mammalian cells.

Higher chlorine concentrations in the water and lower pH results in the formation of di- and tri-chloramine.

Tri-chloramine. the most irritant, has a strong unpleasant odour at concentrations in water as low as 0.02mg/L and together with di-chloramine, is largely responsible for the typical "indoor pool smell". No data is available on the health effects of dichloramine or trichloramine in drinking water.

CONCENTRATION- 3mg/L regulated by Australian Drinking Water Guidelines ( not mandatory )

REMOVAL - activated carbon with low flow rates followed by residual ammonia adsorption using mineral zeolite media if used for fish keeping or breeding (for more info follow the link to FishDoc) or we can recommend our DEIONISATION filter Mixed Bed Resin from our Special Cartridges Department.

TDS - TOTAL DISSOLVED SOLIDS

Total dissolved solids (TDS) comprise inorganic salts and small amounts of organic matter that are dissolved in water. The principal constituents are usually the cations calcium, magnesium, sodium and potassium and the anions carbonate, bicarbonate, chloride, sulphate and, particularly in groundwater, nitrate. Concentrations of TDS in water vary owing to different mineral solubilities in different geological regions. In early studies, inverse relationships were reported between TDS concentrations in drinking water and the incidence of cancer, coronary heart disease, arteriosclerotic heart disease and cardiovascular disease. Total mortality rates were reported to be inversely correlated with TDS levels in drinking water. Conversely, a summary of an Australian study reported that mortality due to all categories of ischaemic heart disease and acute myocardial infarction was increased in a community with higher levels of soluble solids, calcium, magnesium, sulphate, chloride and fluoride, alkalinity, total hardness and pH, when compared with a community in which levels were lower. No attempts were made to relate mortality due to cardiovascular disease to other potential confounding factors. The presence of dissolved solids in water may affect its taste. The palatability of drinking water has been rated, by panels of tasters, according to TDS level as follows: excellent, less than 300 mg/L; good, between 300 and 600 mg/L; fair, between 600 and 900 mg/L; poor, between 900 and 1200 mg/L; and unacceptable, greater than 1200 mg/L. Water with extremely low TDS concentrations may also be unacceptable because of its flat, insipid taste. Melbourne water TDS content varies between 40 and 90 mg/L depending on the source ( reservoir ) before treatment which can increase it slightly.

CONCENTRATION- 500mg/L regulated by Australian Drinking Water Guidelines ( not mandatory )

REMOVAL - the most effective : ion exchange resin and reverse osmosis filters.

FLUORIDE

Fluoride is a fairly common , it accounts for about 0.3 g/kg of the earth's crust and exists in the form of fluorides in a number of minerals, of which fluorspar, cryolite, and fluorapatite are the most common. Traces of fluorides are present in many waters; higher concentrations are often associated with underground sources. In seawater, a total fluoride concentration of 1.3 mg/litre has been reported . In areas rich in fluoride-containing minerals, well-waters may contain up to about 10 mg of fluoride per litre. Fluorides may also enter a river as a result of industrial discharges . In groundwater, fluoride concentrations vary with the type of rock the water flows through but do not usually exceed 10 mg/litre. All vegetation contains some fluoride, which is absorbed from soil and water. The highest levels in field-grown vegetables are found in curly kale (up to 40 mg/kg fresh weight) and endive (0.3–2.8 mg/kg fresh weight) . Other foods containing high levels include fish (0.1–30 mg/kg) and tea . High concentrations in tea can be caused by high natural concentrations in tea plants or by the use of additives during growth or fermentation. Levels in dry tea can be 3–300 mg/kg (average 100 mg/kg), so 2–3 cups of tea contain approximately 0.4–0.8 mg . In areas where water with a high fluoride content is used to prepare tea, the intake via tea can be several times greater. Fluoride may give rise to mild dental fluorosis (prevalence: 12–33%) at drinking-water concentrations between 0.9 and 1.2 mg/litre . This has been confirmed in numerous subsequent studies, including a recent large-scale survey carried out in China, which showed that, with drinking-water containing 1 mg of fluoride per litre, dental fluorosis was detectable in 46% of the population examined. As a rough approximation, for areas with a temperate climate, manifest dental fluorosis occurs at concentrations above 1.5–2 mg of fluoride per litre of drinking-water. In warmer areas, dental fluorosis occurs at lower concentrations in the drinking-water because of the greater amounts of water consumed . It is also possible that, in areas where fluoride intake via routes other than drinking-water (e.g. air, food) is elevated, dental fluorosis develops at concentrations in drinking-water below 1.5 mg/litre.

Fluoride can also have more serious effects on skeletal tissues. Skeletal fluorosis (with adverse changes in bone structure) is observed when drinking-water contains 3–6 mg of fluoride per litre. Crippling skeletal fluorosis develops where drinking-water contains over 10 mg of fluoride per litre . In Australia, the National Health & Medical Research Council, Australian Dental Association and Australian Medical Association all endorsed fluoridation in the 1950s, despite considerable opposition from doctors in the letters columns of the Medical Journal of Australia. At that time there was almost no knowledge of the mechanisms of action of fluoride in the human body.Chronic intake of excessive fluoride can lead to the severe and permanent bone and joint deformations of skeletal fluorosis. Early symptoms include sporadic pain and stiffness of joints: headache, stomach-ache and muscle weakness can also be warning signs. The next stage is osteosclerosis (hardening and calcifying of the bones), and finally the spine, major joints, muscles and nervous system are damaged. There are serious concerns about a connection between fluoridation and osteosarcoma in young men (Cohn, 1992), as well as fluoridation and the current epidemics of both arthritis and hypothyroidism.
For more information please visit www.fluoridealert.org

CONCENTRATION- 1 mg/L regulated by Australian Drinking Water Guidelines ( not mandatory )

REMOVAL - the most effective : ion exchange resin and reverse osmosis filters, carbon filters will reduce

fluoride levels by app. 30%.

ALUMINIUM

We usually think of aluminium as a light silvery metal used to make pots and pans, airplanes or tools, but it also has a non-metallic form. It is this form of aluminium that makes up eight per cent of the earth's surface.

Aluminium may be present in water through natural leaching from soil and rock, or from the use of aluminium

salts as coagulants in water treatment.

Aluminium is used in many industrial and domestic products including antacids, antiperspirants and food

additives. It is commonly used by the food industry for food containers and packaging, and many cooking utensils are made from aluminium.

Surveys in the United States and the United Kingdom have reported aluminium concentrations in natural water

sources of 0.014 mg/L to 1.2 mg/L. Concentrations in some Australian water sources can be considerably higher

due to the presence of clay minerals (alumino-silicates), for example up to 18 mg/L in the Murray River.

Residual aluminium concentrations in treated water depend on the concentration in the water source, the alum

dose used, the pH, and the filtration efficiency.

Where alum is used as a coagulant in water treatment, post-flocculation effects can occur if the soluble

aluminium concentration in the treated water exceeds 0.2 mg/L. Depending on pH, a whitish gelatinous

precipitate of aluminium hydroxide can be formed in the distribution system.

There is considerable evidence that Aluminium is neurotoxic. Kidney dialysis patients, in which the gut barrier

is bypassed, can accumulate aluminium in their blood resulting in an encephalopathy known as dialysis

dementia. Investigations have established a correlation between the concentration of aluminium in water used to

prepare dialysis fluid and the incidence of dialysis dementia. If this condition is not too far advanced it responds

to chelation therapy. It appears that dialysis patients are much more susceptible to aluminium in dialysis fluid

than from other sources such as food and antacids. Aluminium has also been linked to other conditions

associated with the use of dialysis units including osteomalacia (a softening of the bones), and anaemia. Reverse

osmosis or deionisation units are now used to treat dialysis water before use, and aluminium concentrations are

kept below 0.01 mg/L.

Aluminium has been associated with two severe neurodegenerative diseases: Parkinsonism dementia (PD) and

amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Both conditions have a high incidence amongst the Chamorro people of

Guam, an area where aluminium is naturally present in food and drinking water. ALS is common in the Pacific,

Western New Guinea and the Kii peninsula of Japan. Both PD and ALS are characterised by loss of motor

function and the presence of neurofibrillary tangles in the brain. One hypothesis suggests that chronic nutritional

deficiencies of calcium and magnesium lead to increased absorption of aluminium, resulting in its deposition in

neurons of the brain (Garruto and Yase, 1986; Garruto et al, 1990).

Elevated concentrations of aluminium have been found in the autopsied brains of people who had suffered

Alzheimer's disease, in regions of the brain containing large numbers of the neurofibrillary tangles which are

characteristic of the disease, and aluminium has been proposed as one of a number of causal agents (Perl and

Brody, 1980). There have been a number of epidemiological studies to determine if aluminium in drinking water

plays a role in Alzheimer's disease.

In a far-reaching study published in January (1995), William Forbes, a university of Waterloo gerontologist, demonstrated an apparent connection between mental impairment and aluminium in about 100 Ontario communities. In each community, researchers determined the amount of aluminium in the water supply and tested the mental state of people starting at the age of 45 and continuing over a period of 35 years. They concluded, said Forbes, that the risk of impaired mental functions was "almost 10 times higher in areas where the aluminium levels in drinking water were high."

CONCENTRATION- 0.2 mg/L regulated by Australian Drinking Water Guidelines ( not mandatory )

REMOVAL - the most effective : ion exchange resin and reverse osmosis filters.