Annual water quality reports mailed to Chicagoans this month didn't say a word about sex hormones, painkillers or anti-cholesterol drugs, even though city officials found traces of pharmaceuticals and other unregulated substances in treated Lake Michigan water during the past year.
Like other cities, Chicago must notify the public if its drinking water contains certain regulated contaminants, including lead, pesticides and harmful bacteria.
But pharmaceutical chemicals, which have been detected in drinking water across the country, are not on that list. So Mayor Richard Daley is technically correct in stating that the "pure, fresh drinking water" pumped to 7 million people in Chicago and the suburbs "meets or exceeds all regulatory standards."
Drinking water standards haven't been updated for years, in part because little is known about how pharmaceutical concoctions might affect public health. But researchers and regulators are concerned about the potential effects of long-term exposure to these substances, which are designed to have an impact at low doses.
"We're just scratching the surface with what's been detected to date," said Dana Kolpin, a researcher at the U.S. Geological Survey. "And we don't have a clue about what these mixtures can do."
Chicago officials didn't start conducting their own tests until last year, after a Tribune investigation found small amounts of pharmaceuticals and other unregulated chemicals in samples of the city's tap water.
Chicago water: In public reports, city silent over sex hormones and painkillers found in treated drinking water -- chicagotribune.com
Are they drugging the population?



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