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WHO specs for Drinking water

Aluminium

Aluminium is the most abundant metallic element and constitutes about 8% of the Earth’s crust. Aluminium salts are widely used in water treatment as coagulants to reduce organic matter, colour, turbidity and microorganism levels. Such use may lead to increased concentrations of aluminium in finished water.  Where residual concentrations are high, undesirable colour and turbidity may ensue. Concentrations of aluminium at which such problems may occur are highly dependent on a number of water quality parameters and operational factors at the water treatment plant.

 

Aluminium intake from foods, particularly those containing aluminium compounds used as food additives, represents the major route of aluminium exposure for the general public. The contribution of drinking-water to the total oral exposure to aluminium is usually less than 5% of the total intake. In humans, aluminium and its compounds appear to be poorly absorbed, although the rate and extent of absorption have not been adequately studied for all sectors of the population. The degree of aluminium absorption depends on a number of parameters, such as the aluminium salt administered, pH (for aluminium speciation and solubility), bioavailability and dietary factors. These parameters should be taken into consideration during tissue dosimetry and response assessment. The use of currently available animal studies to develop a guideline value for aluminium is not appropriate because of these specific toxicokinetic/toxicodynamic considerations. There is little indication that orally ingested aluminium is acutely toxic to humans despite the widespread occurrence of the element in foods, drinking-water and many antacid preparations. It has been hypothesized that aluminium exposure is a risk factor for the development or acceleration of onset of Alzheimer disease (AD) in humans.

 

The 1997 WHO EHC document for aluminium concludes that:
On the whole, the positive relationship between aluminium in drinking-water and AD, which was demonstrated in several epidemiological studies, cannot be totally dismissed. However, strong reservations about inferring a causal relationship are warranted in view of the failure of these studies to account for demonstrated confounding factors and for total aluminium intake from all sources. Taken together, the relative risks for AD from exposure to aluminium in drinking-water above 100mg/litre, as determined in these studies, are low (less than 2.0). But, because the risk estimates are imprecise for a variety of methodological reasons, a population-attributable risk cannot be calculated with precision. Such imprecise predictions may, however, be useful in making decisions about the need to control exposures to aluminium in the general population. Owing to the limitations of the animal data as a model for humans and the uncertainty surrounding the human data, a health-based guideline value for aluminium cannot be derived at this time. The beneficial effects of the use of aluminium as a coagulant in water treatment are recognized. Taking this into account, and considering the health concerns about aluminium (i.e., its potential neurotoxicity), a practicable level is derived, based on optimization of the coagulation process in drinking-water plants using aluminium based coagulants, to minimize aluminium levels in finished water. 

 

Several approaches are available for minimizing residual aluminium concentrations in treated water. These include use of optimum pH in the coagulation process, avoiding excessive aluminium dosage, good mixing at the point of application of the coagulant, optimum paddle speeds for flocculation and efficient filtration of the aluminium floc. Under good operating conditions, concentrations of aluminium of 0.1 mg/litre or less are achievable in large water treatment facilities. Small facilities (e.g., those serving fewer than 10 000 people) might experience some difficulties in attaining this level, because the small size of the plant provides little buffering for fluctuation in operation; moreover, such facilities often have limited resources and limited CHEMICAL FACT SHEETS access to the expertise needed to solve specific operational problems. For these small facilities, 0.2 mg/litre or less is a practicable level for aluminium in finished water. History of guideline development The 1958, 1963 and 1971 WHO International Standards for Drinking-water did not refer to aluminium. In the first edition of the Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality, published in 1984, a guideline value of 0.2 mg/litre was established for aluminium, based on aesthetic considerations (as a compromise between the use of aluminium compounds in water treatment and discoloration that may be observed if levels above 0.1 mg/litre remain in the distributed water).  No health-based guideline value was recommended in the 1993 Guidelines, but the Guidelines confirmed that a concentration of 0.2 mg/litre in drinking-water provides a compromise between the practical use of aluminium salts in water treatment and discoloration of distributed water. No healthbased guideline value was derived for aluminium in the addendum to the Guidelines published in 1998, owing to the limitations of the animal data as a model for humans and the uncertainty surrounding the human data. However, taking the beneficial effects of the use of aluminium as a coagulant in water treatment into account and considering the health concerns about aluminium (i.e., its potential neurotoxicity), a practicable level was derived based on optimization of the coagulation process in drinking-water plants using aluminium-based coagulants, to minimize aluminium levels in finished water. Under good operating conditions, concentrations of aluminium of 0.1 mg/litre or less are achievable in large water treatment facilities. For small facilities, 0.2 mg/litre or less is a practicable level for aluminium in finished water.


Assessment date:
The risk assessment was originally conducted in 1998. The Final Task Force Meeting in 2003 agreed that this risk assessment be brought forward to this edition of the
Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality.

Principal reference:
WHO (2003) Aluminium in drinking-water. Background document for preparation of
WHO Guidelines for drinking-water quality. Geneva, World Health Organization
(WHO/SDE/WSH/03.04/53).

Ammonia

The term ammonia includes the non-ionized (NH3) and ionized (NH4+) species.  Ammonia in the environment originates from metabolic, agricultural and industrial processes and from disinfection with chloramine. Natural levels in groundwater and surface water are usually below 0.2 mg/litre. Anaerobic groundwaters may contain up
to 3 mg/litre. Intensive rearing of farm animals can give rise to much higher levels in surface water. Ammonia contamination can also arise from cement mortar pipe linings. Ammonia in water is an indicator of possible bacterial, sewage and animal waste pollution. Ammonia is a major component of the metabolism of mammals. Exposure from environmental sources is insignificant in comparison with endogenous synthesis of ammonia. Toxicological effects are observed only at exposures above about 200 mg/kg of body weight.


Ammonia in drinking-water is not of immediate health relevance, and therefore no health-based guideline value is proposed. However, ammonia can compromise dis-infection efficiency, result in nitrite formation in distribution systems, cause the failure of filters for the removal of manganese and cause taste and odour problems (see also
chapter 10). 

 

History of guideline development
The 1958, 1963 and 1971 WHO International Standards for Drinking-water and the first edition of the Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality, published in 1984, did not refer to ammonia. In the 1993 Guidelines, no health-based guideline value was recommended, but the Guidelines stated that ammonia could cause taste and odour problems at concentrations above 35 and 1.5 mg/litre, respectively.


Assessment date
The risk assessment was originally conducted in 1993. The Final Task Force Meeting in 2003 agreed that this risk assessment be brought forward to this edition of the Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality.


Principal reference
WHO (2003) Ammonia in drinking-water. Background document for preparation of
WHO Guidelines for drinking-water quality. Geneva, World Health Organization
(WHO/SDE/WSH/03.04/1).

Elemental antimony forms very hard alloys with copper, lead and tin. Antimony compounds have various therapeutic uses. Antimony was considered as a possible replacement for lead in solders, but there is no evidence of any significant contribution to drinking-water concentrations from this source. Daily oral uptake of antimony appears to be significantly higher than exposure by inhalation, although total exposure from environmental sources, food and drinking-water is very low compared with occupational exposure.

Guideline value 0.02 mg/litre

OccurrenceConcentrations in groundwater and surface water normally range from 0.1 to 0.2 g/litre; concentrations in drinking-water appear to be less than 5 g/litre.

TDI6 µg/kg of body weight, based on a NOAEL of 6.0 mg/kg of body weight per day for decreased body weight gain and reduced food and water intake in a 90-day study in which rats were administered potassium antimony tartrate in drinking-water, using an uncertainty factor of 1000 (100 for inter- and intraspecies variation, 10 for the short duration of the study)

Limit of detection0.01 µg/litre by EAAS; 0.1–1 g/litre by ICP/MS; 0.8 g/litre by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrophotometry; 5 g/litre by hydride generation AAS

Treatment achievabilityConventional treatment processes do not remove antimony. However, antimony is not normally a raw water contaminant. As the most common source of antimony in drinking-water appears to be dissolution from metal plumbing and fittings, control of antimony from such sources would be by product control.

Guideline derivation

  • allocation to water: 10% of TDI

  • weight: 60 kg adult

  • consumption: 2L per day

There has been a significant increase in the toxicity data available since the previous review, although much of it pertains to the intraperitoneal route of exposure. The form of antimony in drinking-water is a key determinant of the toxicity, and it would appear that antimony leached from antimony-containing materials would be in the form of the antimony(V) oxo-anion, which is the less toxic form. The subchronic toxicity of antimony trioxide is lower than that of potassium antimony tartrate, which is the most soluble form. Antimony trioxide, due to its low bioavailability, is genotoxic only in some in vitro tests, but not in vivo, whereas soluble antimony(III) salts exert genotoxic effects in vitro and in vivo. Animal experiments from which the carcinogenic potential of soluble or insoluble antimony compounds may be quantified are not available. IARC has concluded that antimony trioxide is possibly carcinogenic to humans (Group 2B) on the basis of an inhalation study in rats, but that antimony trisulfide was not classifiable as to its carcinogenicity to humans (Group 3). However, chronic oral uptake of potassium antimony tartrate may not be associated with an additional carcinogenic risk, since antimony after inhalation exposure was carcinogenic only in the lung but not in other organs and is known to cause direct lung damage following chronic inhalation as a consequence of overload with insoluble particulates. Although there is some evidence for the carcinogenicity of certain antimony compounds by inhalation, there are no data to indicate carcinogenicity by the oral route. 

History of guideline development
The 1958, 1963 and 1971 WHO International Standards for Drinking-water did not refer to antimony. In the first edition of the Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality, published in 1984, it was concluded that no action was required for antimony. A provisional guideline value for antimony was set at a practical quantification level of 0.005 mg/litre in the 1993 Guidelines, based on available toxicological data. The risk assessment was conducted in 2003.

WHO (2003) Antimony in drinking-water. Background document for preparation of WHO Guidelines for drinking-water quality. Geneva, World Health Organization
(WHO/SDE/WSH/03.04/74)

Antimony

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