Water Quality InformationWritten By Actual Experts

Hydroviv's Science Team

Most people are aware of Volatile Organic Chemicals (VOCs) because they are frequently discussed when selecting paint for their home, but many people don't realize that they can contaminate drinking water supplies. This article provides a broad overview of VOCs as it pertains to water, and also gives practical advice on how to protect against them if a water supply becomes contaminated.

What Are Volatile Organic Chemicals (VOCs)?

By definition, VOCs are a class of chemicals that vaporize easily at normal air temperatures. VOCs are commonly found in household and industrial products including gasoline, solvents, cleaners and degreasers, paints, inks and dyes, and pesticides. For example, gasoline is a mixture of VOCs including benzene, toluene, and other hydrocarbons, which gives gasoline it’s familiar odor.

Can VOCs Contaminate Drinking Water?

Absolutely. In fact, the US Geological Survey (USGS) found in a recent study that VOCs are present in one-fifth of the nation's water supplies. For example, benzene, (a constituent of gasoline) commonly enters groundwater when it spills or leaks out of underground fuel tanks. Other examples of commonly detected VOCs in drinking water include dichloromethane (methylene chloride), an industrial solvent; trichloroethylene, used in septic system cleaners; and tetrachloroethylene (perchloroethylene), used in the dry-cleaning industry.

How Are VOCs In Drinking Water Regulated By EPA?

Because It would be impractical and costly for municipalities to test for every potential chemical that can be categorized as a VOC, EPA regulates a subset of chemicals that commonly contaminate water supplies. For example, benzene, one rather common constituent, is regulated with a maximum contaminant level set at 0.005 milligrams per liter (parts per million) and a goal of zero in drinking water. Water analysis can be requested if there is reason to suspect the presence of a specific VOC.

Private wells are not covered by EPA's regulations and testing is typically optional. While VOCs can be detected by odor at high concentrations, laboratory analysis is the only way to measure VOCs in drinking water at the regulatory limits. We highly recommend that all people who get water from private wells get their water tested by an accredited laboratory.

How To Remove VOCs From Drinking Water

High quality water filters are the only effective way to remove Volatile Organic Compounds in water. These water filter companies (including Hydroviv) test their filters against chemicals that are selected to represent a wide range of VOCs that commonly contaminate water supplies. The NSF Standard 53 protocol for VOC reduction requires manufacturers to test against the chemicals listed in the table below:

Table 1: List of chemicals that are part of the NSF 53 Standard Test For VOC Reduction

As always, we encourage you to reach out to our “Help No Matter What” technical support through live chat or email (support@hydroviv.com). Our team will provide science-backed advice on water quality and water filtration, even if you have no intention of buying a Hydroviv water filter. 

LuLu Brezzell  |  Guest Contributor

Editor's Note: This article is part of an initiative to include stories on our blog that connect water quality issues to the everyday lives of real people. To raise awareness of the 3 year anniversary of the beginning of the Flint Water Crisis, Flint resident LuLu Brezzell describes the roller coaster ride that her family and fellow Flint residents went through once they realized that their water was not safe to drink. Ms. Brezzell was gracious enough to share her story with our audience, and was not paid to do so.

Fear

Fear, the feeling that takes over when you are told that your water source that flows into our home was filled with lead and bacteria. The same water we have been using to drink, cook with, and bathe. Fear, the feeling of knowing that your children may have been exposed to an invisible, tasteless, odorless poison that can cause irreversible damage. As a parent, there is no greater fear. 

This is the same fear that I'm sure every single member of my community felt.

What Happened?

Three years ago, as part of a cost-cutting measure, a state-appointed emergency manager made the decision to switch Flint's drinking water from Detroit's municipal water to the Flint River. Flint's water plant hadn’t treated raw water in decades, never mind the fact that it was not equipped to manage industry standard corrosion control measures that would prevent corrosive river water from eating away at Flint's aging infrastructure.

On the day of the water supply switch, the emergency manager, mayor and other council members all gathered at the Flint Water Plant, and ceremoniously toasted each other with glasses of the new tap water.

Who could have expected that this toast would mark the day that our city lost its access to clean safe water?

Visible Symptoms Hinting At A Much Larger Citywide Problem?

Soon after the switch, my youngest child, who wasn’t even two years old, started to have serious issues with her skin, including persistent rashes that OTC treatments couldn't stop. She was eventually prescribed a steroid ointment that slathered onto her, and wrapped her up like a mummy with plastic wrap. It was horrible, in part because we had no idea what was causing the problem.

Here's the short answer: It was the water she was bathing in.

Shortly thereafter, we had the US CDC, EPA, MDEQ and other agencies all in our home, taking water samples and asking questions in an attempt to diagnose what was causing these issues. We weren't alone in this, it was happening all over our City. It was like watching a horror movie, where you have no idea what was going to happen next.

Our city was in the midst of a widespread water contamination emergency.

An Inspiring Call For Help

My other daughter (8 years old at the time) became very concerned with what she saw happening in Flint, and felt like she needed to do something. Here I am feeling helpless and my child is begging me to let her do something to help.

So help we did! We participated in protests and rallies to raise awareness of the water crisis. We would go out and find people passing out water and jump in a volunteer with them. We made videos and took pictures that we could share on social media.

One day we heard about a bus traveling from Flint to Washington, DC for the congressional hearing for Governor Rick Snyder. My daughter thought that if we were going to go to Washington, DC... it would probably be worth it to write a letter to (then) President Obama. About a week before the trip, she sent the letter, and I was careful to remind her that President Obama was very busy, and that he probably wouldn't be able to read it. The trip to DC came and went as planned, and a good learning experience.

But soon after we returned to Flint, we got a call...

From the White House.

President Obama was touched by her letter and wanted to come to Flint to meet her and to see first hand what was being done for the water crisis.

Flint In The National Spotlight

When that letter was released so much changed, because The Flint Water Crisis was now in the spotlight. Up until that point, I had been begging outside groups to come in and do testing (we didn't trust the testing that the city was conducting). Once the story hit the national news, things changed. We were getting emails and messages offering us water filtration systems, testing, and other products. It was so hard to keep up with everything. I was overwhelmed but grateful that finally it felt like someone was listening and wanting to help.

Navigating Conflicting Voices In A Storm Of Information

Unfortunately, some people saw the media spotlight and chaos as an opportunity to make a name for themselves, or even worse... profit from the situation.

Like anyone, I wanted answers and was willing to listen to everyone who claimed to have a solution that could fix our problem. It's easy to look back and say that I should have focused on certain opinions and ignored other voices, but it's important to remember that at the time... it was complete chaos, and even though we were grasping at straws, we were hopeful that the next straw grasped could be the solution we were looking for. 

Looking back, I feel fortunate that while others were making names for themselves, an outsider with no ties to Flint was willing to remain in the shadows while helping me weed through and understand all of the information. 

What Lies Ahead For Flint's Tap Water?

It's been 3 years since Flint made the fateful water supply switch that turned an entire city upside down.

Unfortunately, it's much easier to make a mess than it is to clean it up. 

Our city's pipes are irreparably damaged, and we're learning that it's not as easy as digging them up and replacing them. Precautions must be taken in the meantime to ensure that no addition exposure occurs as the pipes are swapped out. It's also important to remind ourselves that replacing the service lines will not do anything to fix any lead-containing solder, valves, or plumbing fixtures inside our homes. The official recommendation is that we continue to filter our water for lead, but I know that some residents continue to rely on bottled water.

Another problem that has gone largely unpublicized is that the city is having a hard time maintaining disinfectant levels in the water, which means that some areas have noticeably high chlorine levels while other parts of the pipe network have virtually no residual chlorine to keep the water sterile.

Right now, several city and state officials are under investigation for the alleged roles they played in the Flint water crisis.

Tap water is something that most of us take for granted, but producing clean water at the municipal level is more complicated than most realize. Because of what we have gone through, I don’t think I will ever trust tap water ever again. 

What's Changed In Our Home?

In the year since the letter not much has changed regarding how we use water. We still don’t use the tap water at our house for consumption. Showers are limited to 2 minutes because of how sensitive my families skin is to the water, even when filtered. Bottled water is still a very big part of our everyday lives. As much as an inconvenience as it is to constantly open up bottles of water it has almost become second nature. 

On the activism and awareness front, my daughter is still doing her part to raise awareness of water quality issues, and to be a voice in support of quality science.

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Eric Roy, Ph.D.  |  Scientific Founder

Since The Environmental Working Group recently released a report about the prevalence of chromium-6 in drinking water supplies, our email and support line have been filled with questions about the toxic heavy metal. The purpose of this article is to address a lot of these FAQs, including the answer to "what is chromium-6?," and to discuss how to remove chromium 6 from drinking water.

Is Chromium-6 the Same Thing as “Regular” Chromium?

No. So what is chromium-6? Chromium comes in a variety of chemical “flavors.” Most forms of chromium (e.g. chromium metal, trivalent chromium) are not toxic. These are the types of chromium used to make stainless steel and are found in dietary supplements. There is no reason to be throwing away stainless steel cookware!

Chromium-6 (or hexavalent chromium), on the other hand, is an extremely toxic form of chromium, and is known to cause cancer, even at very low concentrations. In popular culture, chromium-6 is the chemical that was at the center of the Erin Brockovich story, which was made into a movie starring Julia Roberts.

Where Does Chromium-6 Come From?

Unfortunately, chemicals containing chromium-6 are useful in a number of industrial processes, which means that chromium-6 can enter drinking water supplies through waste streams that enter rivers and ground water. Industries that generate chromium-6-containing waste include: steel production, leather tanning, textile manufacturing, wood preservation, and electroplating.

How Is Chromium-6 Regulated?

It's not. In 1991 EPA set a Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) for total chromium (all kinds) in drinking water of 200 parts per billion. The structure of this regulation is flawed because it treats non-toxic forms of chromium in the same manner as highly toxic chromium-6. To put it in perspective, California (which has tighter regulatory conditions that the EPA) has set a proposed limit of 20 parts per trillion for chromium-6, a level that is 10,000 times lower than what the current EPA regulation is for total chromium. Part of the challenge in formulating a proper regulation is that advanced detection procedures and equipment are required to measure things at part per trillion concentrations.

Are the Recent News Articles the Result of a Recent Spike in Chromium-6 Concentrations?

No. There is no sudden rise in chromium-6, the media coverage is just shining light on an existing situation.

What Can I Do To Reduce Exposure To Chromium-6?

Unlike lead, which leaches into water from pipes, chromium-6 comes from the source water itself, so flushing pipes does not reduce concentrations of chromium-6 in drinking water. Boiling water also does not reduce/remove chromium-6.

If you want to remove chromium-6 from your water, you need to filter it using a high end water filter. Filtration pitchers and common fridge filters DO NOT filter chromium-6 from water. A new generation of water filters that use chromium 6 removal media are extremely effective at filtering chromium-6 (and other contaminants) from water. Reverse osmosis is also a viable way to remove chromium 6 from water for people who are willing to accept the drawbacks, including low flow rate. We recently wrote a more in depth article on how to filter chromium 6 from water.

If you have any questions about filtering chromium-6 from your water, we encourage you to take advantage of Hydroviv’s “Help No Matter What” approach to technical support, where we will help you select an effective water filter system, even if it’s not one that we sell. This free service can be reached by emailing support@hydroviv.com

Update April 23, 2017: We have published an article specifically on how to filter chromium 6 from drinking water. See it HERE

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 Eric Roy, Ph.D.  |  Scientific Founder  

This Tuesday, US EPA reported that US Steel Corporation spilled a large (but undisclosed) amount of chromium 6-containing wastewater into a Lake Michigan Tributary, and about 20 miles from the location where the City of Chicago draws drinking water from. This past fall, we wrote an article the basics of chromium 6 in drinking water, but the focus of today's article is specifically about the recent spill into Lake Michigan.

Where Did The Chromium 6 Lake Michigan Spill Occur?

The map below (From Chicago Tribune) shows the location of the spill. It's roughly 20 miles from the 68th Street Water Intake Crib for the City of Chicago.

What Caused The Chromium 6 Lake Michigan Spill?

US Steel reported that a stainless steel joint failure in a pipe caused the release of chromium 6-contaminated wastewater into the environment. The pipe contained wastewater from an electroplating process.

Is Water Quality Impacted by Chromium 6 Contamination?

Beaches and parks within a 3 mile vicinity of the spill were closed down. Several cities that draw water from Lake Michigan stopped pulling water. The City of Chicago began "Emergency Testing" of water near source water intakes.

Data and statements from EPA from water tests seem to be in conflict. On one hand, EPA says that they're not seeing anything unusual, but there are measurements taken more than a mile from the spill where chromium 6 concentrations are roughly 10x higher than baseline measurements taken from more offshore locations over the past 3 years.

It's important to point out that chromium 6 is extremely toxic, it is NOT REGULATED ON ITS OWN. EPA does not differentiate between carcinogenic chromium 6 and chromium (III), which is an essential nutrient for humans. Absurdity of this aside, remember that Chicago's drinking water (which is pulled from Lake Michigan) has a 3 year average chromium 6 concentration of 190 parts per trillion, which is nearly 20 times higher than the level associated with negligible risk.

How Do I Remove Chromium 6 From Drinking Water?

To remove chromium 6 from water, you need to filter it. Boiling or freezing water does NOT remove chromium 6, or make it less toxic. We recently wrote a more in-depth article on how to filter chromium 6 from water. We are particularly fond of our approach to water filtration over reverse osmosis for a number of reasons, but both will work.

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Anya Alvarez  |  Contributor

Each year new chemicals enter the environment through new products and manufacturing processes, making it important to understand how these chemicals are determined to be safe for consumers, especially since those chemicals can end up in water supplies.

Back in 1976, when the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) was passed, it aimed at providing rules and regulations for the Environmental Protection Agency to follow when allowing chemicals on the market. It was an illusion that gave people in the United States that the government was doing its due diligence in making sure no unsafe chemicals would enter commerce. What in fact took place under the act might surprise you: more than 60,000 known chemicals already in commerce were grandfathered in. This means these chemicals were exempt from any further review from the EPA, and did not require chemical makers notify the EPA when they manufactured or developed a new chemical.

In addition, it left the EPA with its hands tied when it came to its authority to ban chemicals. The EPA actually bears the responsibility of having to prove a chemical poses an “unreasonable risk.” Because of this, the EPA has only banned 5 chemicals (dioxin, PCBs, chlorofluorocarbons,, asbestos, and chromium 6) since the bill’s passage.

With that in mind though, the EPA also has to consider the financial costs of regulating a chemical. When the EPA tried to ban asbestos, the Fifth Circuit of Court appeals in 1991 overturned the EPA’s ban because it had not considered the the cost of banning it.

Keep in mind with how different the rules and regulations are for countries in the European Union

• Chemicals in the EU cannot go on the market until the company (not the government) proves they are safe
• When there is any absence of evidence that a chemical is safe, the EU does not take chances and instead does not allow the chemical on the market at all

Several bipartisan efforts have taken place in order amend certain parts of the TSCA. In 2015 Sens. David Vitter (R-La.) and Tom Udall (D-N.M.), introduced a bill that would replace the TSCA’s core provisions. Their TSCA reform bill would still not put the burden of proof on companies, but instead would companies show their substances meet standards before they would go on market.

Probably one of more important parts of the bill, though, is that it would no longer require the EPA to consider financial costs if a substance poses an “unreasonable risk,” also requiring the EPA to address 25 substances the agency believes pose a high risk.

Such bills in the past that have tried to overhaul provisions of the TSCA have failed simply because some on one side of the aisle think the government is overstepping its reach. And when the proposed bills have loosened its regulations, environmental and health groups have pushed back saying the bill doesn’t go far enough.

Just last year though, a bipartisan bill, Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (H.R. 2576), was passed and signed into law by President Obama.

Under the new law:

• The EPA is required to evaluate existing chemicals, with at least 20 chemicals at a time, under enforceable and clear deadlines. As soon as a review of a chemical is complete, the EPA must begin a new chemical review.
• Chemicals will be evaluated based on potential health risks they pose. The old Toxic Substances Control Act regulations made it incredibly difficult for the EPA to take action, even when a chemical posed a known health threat. Under the new provisions, the EPA will take necessary steps to eliminate any potential risks they find.
• The EPA will now the power to collect up to $25 million a year in user fees from chemical manufacturers and processors, in order to pay their new responsibilities and to make improvements in their ability to limit harmful chemicals on the market.

With the new administration, it will be important for the EPA and legislators to keep a close eye on new appointments and be prepared for any loosening of Toxic Substances Control Act regulations on chemical companies. For most legislators they understand how crucial it is to have give the EPA control in how it regulates chemicals on the market, which is why so many bipartisan efforts have taken place over the last 40 years to give the EPA more control to do so. Let’s hope it stays that way.

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