Smalling Kelly L, Romanok Kristin M, Bradley Paul M, Hladik Michelle L, Gray James L, Kanagy Leslie K, McCleskey R Blaine, Stavreva Diana A, Alexander-Ozinskas Annika K, Alonso Jesus, Avila Wendy, Breitmeyer Sara E, Bustillo Roberto, Gordon Stephanie E, Hager Gordon L, Jones Rena R, Kolpin Dana W, Newton Seth, Reynolds Peggy, Sloop John, Ventura Andria, Von Behren Julie, Ward Mary H, Solomon Gina M
U.S. Geological Survey, Lawrenceville, NJ, USA.
U.S. Geological Survey, Lawrenceville, NJ, USA.
Water Res. 2024 Dec 1;267:122485. doi: 10.1016/j.watres.2024.122485. Epub 2024 Sep 25.
Water is an increasingly precious resource in California as years of drought, climate change, pollution, as well as an expanding population have all stressed the state's drinking water supplies. Currently, there are increasing concerns about whether regulated and unregulated contaminants in drinking water are linked to a variety of human-health outcomes particularly in socially disadvantaged communities with a history of health risks. To begin to address this data gap by broadly assessing contaminant mixture exposures, the current study was designed to collect tapwater samples from communities in Gold Country, the San Francisco Bay Area, two regions of the Central Valley (Merced/Fresno and Kern counties), and southeast Los Angeles for 251 organic chemicals and 32 inorganic constituents. Sampling prioritized low-income areas with suspected water quality challenges and elevated breast cancer rates. Results indicated that mixtures of regulated and unregulated contaminants were observed frequently in tapwater throughout the areas studied and the types and concentrations of detected contaminants varied by region, drinking-water source, and size of the public water system. Multiple exceedances of enforceable maximum contaminant level(s) (MCL), non-enforceable MCL goal(s) (MCLG), and other health advisories combined with frequent exceedances of benchmark-based hazard indices were also observed in samples collected in all five of the study regions. Given the current focus on improving water quality in socially disadvantaged communities, our study highlights the importance of assessing mixed-contaminant exposures in drinking water at the point of consumption to adequately address human-health concerns (e.g., breast cancer risk). Data from this pilot study provide a foundation for future studies across a greater number of communities in California to assess potential linkages between breast cancer rates and tapwater contaminants.
在加利福尼亚州，水正日益成为一种珍贵资源，因为多年的干旱、气候变化、污染以及人口增长，都给该州的饮用水供应造成了压力。目前，人们越来越担心饮用水中受监管和不受监管的污染物是否与各种人类健康问题有关，尤其是在有健康风险历史的社会弱势社区。为了通过广泛评估污染物混合物暴露情况来填补这一数据空白，本研究旨在从黄金之乡、旧金山湾区、中央谷地的两个地区（默塞德/弗雷斯诺和克恩县）以及洛杉矶东南部的社区采集自来水样本，检测其中的251种有机化学品和32种无机成分。采样优先考虑水质有问题且乳腺癌发病率较高的低收入地区。结果表明，在所研究的各个地区的自来水中，经常能检测到受监管和不受监管的污染物混合物，而且检测到的污染物类型和浓度因地区、饮用水源和公共供水系统规模而异。在所有五个研究区域采集的样本中，还发现了多个可执行的最大污染物水平（MCL）、不可执行的MCL目标（MCLG）以及其他健康建议被超过的情况，同时基于基准的危害指数也经常被超过。鉴于目前关注改善社会弱势社区的水质，我们的研究强调了在消费点评估饮用水中混合污染物暴露情况对于充分解决人类健康问题（如乳腺癌风险）的重要性。这项初步研究的数据为未来在加利福尼亚州更多社区开展的研究奠定了基础，以评估乳腺癌发病率与自来水污染物之间的潜在联系。
