ECCV's Response to Pharmaceuticals Found in Drinking Water

At East Cherry Creek Valley Water and Sanitation District, it is our primary responsibility to provide safe and dependable drinking water to our customers. The District conducts regular, mandated water quality tests and reports our findings to the public in our annual water quality reports, which can be read here.

It is true that pharmaceuticals, consisting of human and veterinary drug compounds, have been detected in trace concentrations, measuring in parts per billion or trillion, in American drinking water supplies, surface water and wastewater effluents. There are conflicting opinions among scientists about the perceived levels of concern. (As a point of information, one part per trillion is equivalent to one drop in the water volume of 20 Olympic-sized swimming pools).

Pharmaceuticals enter the water supply through various means, including being:

• flushed down drains as unused medications

• excreted by humans or animals as an unabsorbed drug

• improper commercial disposal

Technological advances in water testing equipment have only recently enabled the industry to begin to detect and measure these chemicals in such infinitesimal concentrations. As such, the health impacts from the presence of these compounds in drinking water are still largely unresearched and unknown. While these compounds may be detected at very low levels in source waters, people regularly consume or expose themselves to products containing these compounds in much higher concentrations through medicines.

Like many small water providers, ECCV does not yet have the capabilities to conduct tests for pharmaceuticals and other compounds present in parts per billion or trillion. This technology will continue to evolve and ECCV will continue to monitor and support advances in this area.

Federal regulations do not require water providers to test for nor treat to remove these compounds, but many of the accepted water treatment processes that exist today, including reverse-osmosis, ultraviolet radiation and chlorine, may successfully remove a number of pharmaceutical compounds from drinking water. ECCV is in the process of designing a treatment facility as part of its Northern Project which will utilize all three of these treatment steps.

Consumers are being encouraged to put the pharmaceutical concentrations into perspective, as a balance against other public health risks.

• Dispose of unused over-the-counter and prescription medication in your garbage, not down the drain.

• Note that home water treatment devices, or point of use (POU) devices often use confusing terms to influence a consumer’s decision to purchase a product. Many times the POU devices will not do anything to improve the water quality as they do not target the right type of compounds or are not properly maintained. Please obtain a second opinion from a qualified source before purchasing any POU device.

To date, ECCV is not aware of any approved disposal method or site in metro Denver, but will continue to research and make its customers aware of an appropriate disposal method.

For more information, please visit the American Water Works Association’s fact page on Pharmaceuticals.

If you have questions about your drinking water quality, please contact our office.