Water is the single most important part of our lives. Without water, we cannot imagine how our lives would have been. Water plays a very crucial role in our day-to-day lives. Today, water is no longer as clean across the world as it used to be.
Water pollution has become a concerning factor for governments, organizations and scientists. One of the major causes of water pollution is man-made, which is also referred to as anthropogenic pollution.
Water is contaminated with various harmful substances like heavy metals, sediments, arsenic, lead, volatile organic compounds (hereafter referred to as VOCs), industrial chemicals, human wastes, animal waste and other biological and natural waste. Water can get infected in so many ways, and it is difficult to keep all the contaminants away from the water.
In this article, we are going to talk about a major and harmful substance commonly found in water. The substance is VOCs, which are very harmful and widely found across the continents.
Table of Contents
What are Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)?
VOCs are organic chemicals that have a low boiling point. It is harmful and easily gets oxidized with the air and vaporizes. VOCs are found in households and industrial chemicals like gasoline, paints, inks, dyes and other cleaners.
These compounds are also found underground, industrial dumping, leaks, spills. It can transfer to your household tap water as well. VOCs are harmful to the environment as well as humans. To be more specific, VOCs include a variety of chemicals that are harmful to all of us.
How do VOCs get into the drinking water?
Since VOCs travel through the air, they can get into the groundwater and contaminate the water. These various VOCs sip into the surfaces and get into the water table. Do note that VOCs are generally not found in water from oceans, seas, streams, and ponds because they evaporate in the air.
How to find VOCs in your drinking water?
Generally, water coming to your house from musical supply is or has been tested for VOCs. They are tested by the concerned department. You can even contact the Department of Environment if you have a private well or any other water source that needs to be checked. Also, you can get in touch with the (EPA) Environment Protection Agency.
Common VOCs found in water?
- Trihalomethane – mostly found in public water systems. This chemical is a water disinfectant by-product. All states in the United States use chlorine or chloramine to disinfect water.
- Perchloroethylene (PCB) – is also a by-product of a chemical solvent. Mostly used in dry cleaning activities by industries.
- MTBE – is a lead alternative used in gasoline; water gets contaminated mainly due to spills and leaks.
What are the effects of VOCs on our health?
- Can cause dizziness
- Can become difficult to remember and concentrate
- Can damage the nervous system
- Irregular heartbeat
- Other health issues
- Carcinogenic effects
Note – These effects are on various VOCs and not only on a specific substance. So there may be variance in the effects due to the different types of VOC substances.
Ways to remove VOCs from your water?
- You can install a water filter
- You can get your water tested by the municipality
- Can consider installing Granulated Activated Carbon Filter (GAC) or Activated Carbon Filter (ACF)
- An air stripping information system can also be installed
Common sources of VOCs
- Paints and related solvents
- fuels and automobile products and by-products
- air sprays or aerosol sprays
- dry cleaning and dying products
- pesticides and related products
- printers, copier machine and so forth
- building material and related products and furnishings as well
Where can VOCs in water be tested? (specific to the USA)
- You can get your water tested by a municipal authority
- One can contact the department of environmental protection if you have a private well water
- Environment Protection Agency (EPA) is also an agency specifically looking into various contaminants found in water, you can contact them and get your water tested for VOCs
Conclusion
Volatile Organic Compounds VOCs are mainly found in the air as they get oxidized, but they can get sipped into groundwater and then into water tables. VOCs are very harmful and can have severe consequences on our health. And moreover, it is not safe to consume water with VOCs.
We recommend that people having private wells or tap water get their water tested for VOCs. There are few methods to test VOCs in water which we have already mentioned in the above paragraph but do refer to more ideas on it. We have also listed possible health effects and how exactly VOCs contaminate the water.
