Experts hope that with the incoming Biden administration, the federal government will finally regulate a class of chemicals known as PFASs Credit: Thomas Trutschel Getty Images Many Americans fill up a glass of water from their faucet without worrying whether it might be dangerous. But the crisis of lead-tainted water in Flint, Mich., showed that safe, potable tap water is not a given in this country. Now a study from the Environmental Working Group (EWG), a nonprofit advocacy organization, reveals a widespread problem: the drinking water of a majority of Americans likely contains “forever chemicals.” These compounds may take hundreds, or even thousands, of years to break down in the environment. They can also persist in the human body, potentially causing health problems. A handful of states have set about trying to address these contaminants, which are scientifically known as perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs). But no federal limits have bee...
Iron is one of the major secondary contaminant in both domestic and industrial water supply. Iron have caused water industries several billions of dollars . Iron is the second most abundant metal in the earth's crust behind Aluminum(8%), of which iron accounts for about 5%. Elemental iron is rarely found in nature, as the iron ions Fe2+ and Fe3+ readily combine with oxygen- and sulfur-containing compounds to form oxides, hydroxides, carbonates, and sulfides. As rain fall, rain water infiltrates the soil and underlying geologic formations and dissolves iron, causing it to seep into aquifers that serve as sources of groundwater for wells. In surface water, such as rivers and lakes, dissolved iron is hardly ever found, because it readily reacts with oxygen, forms insoluble compounds and sinks out into the bottom of the water body. Iron is seldom found at concentrations greater than 10 milligrams per liter (mg/L) or 10 parts per million. The iron that seep into the sources of g...