For over a century, public water systems have used chemical compounds to kill pathogens that cause waterborne diseases such as cholera.
  • xj9 [they/them, she/her]@hexbear.netEnglish
    38·
    7 months ago

    Since the 1990s, many public systems have switched to inorganic chloramine, a chlorine derivative, to purify water supplies. Systems serving about 113 million people in the U.S. use this process. This alternative purifying chemical produces hundreds of byproducts, including an “unidentified product” that befuddled scientists.

    In findings published in the journal Science, researchers have identified that compound, chloronitramide anion. They found it has possible risks linked to carcinogens and could be harmful to reproductive and developmental health.

    I can’t find a public access version of that article tho… I wonder if any common filtering methods work on this substance?

    (this issue of Science just came out, so maybe the access issue will resolve itself in the next few days)