What's in my water?

In a couple of classes drinking water contamination has been mentioned and it sparked my interest in exactly what I'm drinking in when I take a drink from the faucet.

The comments made in class were to the effect that the Denton County water supply contains trace amounts of prozac and birth control pills with every sip. There are many other prescription meds found in trace amounts...these two are just the most prominent. And we wonder why great quantities of fish are being found androgynous or male with female parts.

After researching this a bit I've found that it's a national problem, not just in Denton county. Due to the hyper-prescribing of certain medications as a community we are collectively polluting the water.

I found some useful information at the EPA's website



I also found the Frisco Water report published in August, which had a 'superior' quality rating, but the traces of things in the water still grosses me out. I don't want to resort to buying bottled water all the time...for several reasons:

1. the plastic container contains chemicals that can leach into the water
2. the cost in oil of shipping the bottled water to the store is about 1/5 the cost of the water...so to save oil/ promote an ecofriendly environment it's more considerate to drink tap water.
3. I have a Pur filter system...I just wonder what it filters and I have a feeling it doesn't filter my neighbor's prescription drugs.
4. Some bottled water companies have been found just bottling tap water.

Another concern is this: if farmers are using this same water to irrigate plants for food, are the trace amounts of these drugs absorbed into the plant systems therefore being reintroduced to our systems when we eat them?

There...now I can go back to sleep. I've been up thinking about this and it's interrupted my sleep for two days. For now the best I can do is drink tap water using my Pur filter, until I find a better solution.