Water keeps us alive; there’s no question about that; it only takes three days without water for the human body to shut down. With water being core to our health and with the amount we consume daily it’s only natural that we question the quality of our water to ensure good health.
What impacts water quality?
Water quality can be inhibited by contaminants which can be classified as any physical, chemical, biological, or radiological matter. This classification is extremely broad, and includes many contaminants that hold no negative impact, therefore specific common contaminants in each of the categories that do have a negative impact is what is likely to lower water quality.
What contaminants decrease water quality?
As aforementioned only some contaminants have negative impacts to health, each category of harmful contaminants will be explored below.
1. Physical contaminants, such as sediment and suspended solids primarily only impact physical appearance or other physical properties of water and therefore are not a cause for concern.
2. Chemical contaminants include elements and compounds. Many of these are harmful.
· Chlorine, although generally harmless on itself, free chlorine molecules bond with ammonia to form Disinfectant Byproduct (DBPs) which are carcinogenic. This however, typically is not an issue with tap water as DBP levels are regulated.
· Nitrate and Nitrite are present in chemical fertilizers, human sewage, and animal waste and fertilizers. They are not significantly harmful to adults however are very harmful to infants and can cause “blue baby syndrome” which reduces the blood’s ability to carry oxygen.
· Heavy metals such as arsenic, antimony, cadmium, chromium, copper, lead and selenium which enter water via household plumbing and service lines, many industrial operations, and natural mineral deposits are carcinogenic and cause organ damage.
3. Biological contaminants are organisms in water, such as bacteria, viruses, and parasites. These are typically eliminated completely in water treatment however may enter water whilst in storage.
· Algae can commonly form in water storage such as in a water tank, or water dispenser. Some common algae such as blue-green algae can be very harmful.
4. Radiological contaminants are unstable chemical elements that emit ionizing radiation, such as uranium and plutonium. These may become apparent in water due to nuclear or mining activities and are carcinogenic.
What are the highest quality water sources and how can we increase water quality?
Water quality is highly dependent on the source as different sources of water are exposed to different contaminants. Some sources will be explored from a general standpoint below.
1. Tap water is highly dependent on the country and area of source. Australia as well as many Eastern European countries are ranked in the top 15 countries for safe drinking water by World Population Review. In Australia out of all contaminants tap water is most susceptible to chemical contaminants.
2. Rainwater generally has extremely low amounts of chemical contaminants depending on the area, however, is much more susceptible to biological contaminants. This drawback can be treated with home filtration systems.
3. Bottled water generally has very little contamination from any source due to rigorous regulations for commercial sale. One drawback, dependent on packaging is the presence of microplastics in the water.
4. Reverse osmosis is a water filtration method which separates water molecules from contaminants via a semi-permeable membrane. This results in very few contaminants in the water, leading to the highest quality water of these options.
Water quality fundamentally relies on the source however, water quality can be vastly improved via home water filtration systems, including reverse osmosis systems.
Overall water quality is impacted by many different sources of contaminants and if your main water source is one susceptible significant levels of contaminants it is recommendable to either change your water source, or implement a home filtration system.
References
Patel, P. (2025). Top 10 Contaminants Found In Tap Water. Retrieved from aquasana: https://www.aquasana.com/info/top-10-contaminants-found-in-tap-water-pd.html
US EPA. (2024, December). Potential Well Water Contaminants and Their Impacts. Retrieved from US Environmental Protection Agency: https://www.epa.gov/privatewells/potential-well-water-contaminants-and-their-impacts
US EPA. (2024, August 17). Types of Drinking Water Contaminants. Retrieved from US Environmental Protection Agency: https://www.epa.gov/ccl/types-drinking-water-contaminants
Water Quality Association. (2019). https://wqa.org/resources/reverse-osmosis-ro/. Retrieved from Water Quality Association: https://wqa.org/resources/reverse-osmosis-ro/
Whole World Water. (2024, March). Disinfection Byproducts (DBPs) in Water: Hidden Dangers. Retrieved from Whole World Water: https://wholeworldwater.co/disinfection-byproducts-dbps-in-water/