The Truth About Chemicals Found in Tap Water

Forty years ago, there was a limited amount of information about chemicals found in tap water. At that time, the conservation of water, air and soil occupied the thoughts of many future environmentalists.

Today some former conservationists have joined the Environmental Working Group (EWG). That Group has released information about the chemicals found in tap water. Their information has stated that there are 141 unregulated chemicals in the typical glass of tap water.

Such statistics underline the advantage to seeking an alternative to tap water. The public has seen both bottled water and filtered tap water as a likely alternative. Does bottled water lack the chemicals found in tap water? Have those same harmful chemicals been removed from filtered tap water? Those are the questions that this article intends to answer.

A large percentage of the unwanted chemical substances in today's drinking water result from efforts that were supposed to disinfect some element of the environment. Such disinfection efforts have introduced nitrates, chloroform, barium, arsenic and copper into municipal water supplies.

Today, the water from the tap contains so many different chemicals that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has been unable to assess the risk of exposure to each of those chemicals. Even some chemicals that put the public at risk remain absent from the list of chemical limitations on water, limitations that are enforced by the EPA.

Read and consider what Jane Houlihan, vice president of the EWG has said: "...in many communities the water that comes out of the tap could be contaminated with scores of chemicals." Ms. Houlihan did not issue that statement in order to alarm people. She simply wanted to call attention to the fact that there are many unhealthful chemicals found in tap water.

Today a growing number of groups such as the EWG have found it necessary to expand on their information about the chemical-laden tap water. Those groups have learned that chemicals from the plastic can leech into bottled water. While some people have reverted to filling metal containers with water from the tap, others have chosen to use filtered tap water.

Agriculture, industry and the expansion of urban settings has increased the number of chemicals in the aquatic environment. Treatment plants lack the ability to remove all of those chemicals. Homeowners and businesses must look to filtering systems, if they want to provide residents and employees with clean and good-tasting water.

The most cost effective solution is a point of use filtering system. Still, not all filtering systems do an effective job of delivering pure water to each person who has gone in search of clean drinking water. The most effective filtering equipment contains activated carbon filters, in combination with ion exchange and micron filtration.

When a homeowner or business owner invests in such a system, then he or she can expect to enjoy a worry-free sleep at night. He or she will know that either employees or residents and guests are able to refresh themselves with the safest possible water.