Implications of Pharmaceuticals and Endocrine Disrupting Compounds for the Drinking Water Industry

This talk will present the current state of knowledge pertaining to the presence of pharmaceuticals and endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs) in U.S. drinking water. Though there is no consensus whether or not these compounds should or will be regulated, scientists and engineers are in the process of developing a sound understanding of their occurrence, fate, and transport. We will highlight results from two extensive monitoring programs, in which the drinking water of approximately 30 drinking water treatment plants was screened for pharmaceuticals and EDCs. The relative persistence of individual compounds from source to finished water is partly explained by their behavior during conventional water treatment (e.g. chlorination, chloramination). Their removal by advanced treatment processes (e.g., ozone, membrane, UV-H2O2, and UV-TiO2 photocatalysis) will also be discussed. In this talk we will suggest a list of surrogate and indicator compounds for which scientists and regulators may test in order to determine the efficacy of a given treatment system. Lastly, we will highlight phenomena that can lead to changes in pharmaceutical and EDC concentrations in drinking waters, including changes in surface water flow due to seasonal variability as well as global climate change.