Drugs Aren't the only Problem with Water
1.1 billion people worldwide—1 in every 6—do not have access to the ‘clean-enough water’ that Americans enjoy. In fact, one child dies every 15 seconds due to waterborne diseases in third world countries, according to the Blue Planet Run Foundation.

The increased use of bottled water also has ramifications of excessive plastic waste, water inefficiency, and greenhouse gas. For instance, it takes 5 liters of water to make 1 liter of Fiji bottled water, when you include power plant cooling and transportation of bottles.  More than 70% of the plastic bottles are not recycled in the US, and either end up in landfills or the environment.  Nearly 25% of bottled water is tap water in the US, and may also be unscreened for pharmaceuticals.

Water issues are increasingly being recognized as a crucial concern worldwide. From shrinking aquifers, pollution from agricultural run-off, and aging infrastructure to climate change, melting glaciers and water scarcity, solutions for clean water will become even more imperative for wildlife and human health on a global scale as population rises. 

According to Lester Brown of the Earth Policy Institute:

"The thing to keep in mind is that it takes 1,000 tons of water to produce one ton of grain...Seventy percent of all the water we use in the world - that we pump from underground or divert from rivers  is used in irrigation. Not everyone has connected the dots to see that a future of water shortages will be a future of food shortages."

Congress Responds
Despite growing concern over the pharmaceutical contamination in our fresh water supplies, the problem is likely to increase as American use of prescription medications continues to grow. Government agencies, hospitals, the water processing industry and individual communities must work together to identify effective and efficient means to reduce the quantity of pharmaceuticals entering U.S. water supplies.

Senator Frank Lautenberg (NJ) has joined Senator Barbara Boxer (California) in announcing their joint intention to hold a Congressional hearing into the discovery of pharmaceutical drugs in the US municipal water supplies.

And Representative Allyson Schwartz (Pennsylvania) has asked the US-EPA to establish a national taskforce to investigate the issue of pharmaceutical-contaminated drinking water and make recommendations to Congress on any legislative actions needed.

In a letter to EPA administrator Stephen Johnson, Schwartz said, "Like many Pennsylvanians, I was especially taken aback by the finding of 56 different pharmaceuticals discovered in the drinking water for the City of Philadelphia.. . . The Associated Press report raises serious questions about the safety and security of America's water system."

Image of tap water courtesy of E-Magazine