Lead in Australia’s Drinking Water

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Lead in Australia’s Drinking Water

Low-level lead contamination of water is widespread in Australian homes, with brass tap fittings the most likely source.

This is the finding of a large-scale study on water samples from kitchen taps in 212 homes dotted across New South Wales, the state that contains Sydney and Canberra.

TapAuthorities around the world routinely monitor drinking water in storage reservoirs and distribution pipes to ensure that lead levels are below guideline limits.

But lead from brass kitchen taps can enter water further down the supply chain, says Paul Harvey at Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia.

In their study, Harvey and his colleagues detected lead in 56 % of samples – and 8 per cent of those exceeded the limit of 10 micrograms per litre set in the Australian Drinking Water Guidelines.

In a subsequent experiment, the researchers tested the water before and after it passed through brass taps, which contain small amounts of lead, and lead-free stainless steel taps. Lead was only found in water that had passed through brass ones.

“Water sits inside the brass barrel of your tap, where it can be exposed to lead for a long time, especially if it sits there overnight,” Harvey says.

Toxic effects

Lead is a neurotoxin that is particularly harmful to children. Studies have linked low-level lead exposure to reductions in IQ and attention span, as well as a greater tendency for antisocial behaviour.

Australia’s 10-microgram lead limit for drinking water was set in the mid-1990s, but the World Health Organization has since deemed that no level of exposure is safe.

Source: New Scientist

 

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