美國自來水的硝酸鹽污染每年可導致12,500例癌症病例 Nitrate pollution of US tap water could cause 12,500 cancer cases each year

新聞稿11-Jun-2019

EWG：美國自來水的硝酸鹽污染每年可導致12,500例癌症病例

開創性的同行評審研究分析了農業廣泛的化學污染對健康和經濟的影響

環境工作組

華盛頓 – 根據環境工作組的一項新的同行評審研究，美國飲用水的硝酸鹽污染每年可導致多達12,594例癌症。

對於今天在環境研究期刊上發表的開創性研究，EWG科學家估計每個州的癌症病例數可歸因於公共供水系統的硝酸鹽污染，這主要是由含有肥料和糞便的農田徑流造成的。他們還估計每年處理這些案件的費用高達15億美元。

“飲用水的硝酸鹽污染是一個嚴重的問題，尤其是在該國的農業國家，”EWG高級科學顧問，該研究的作者之一Olga Naidenko博士說。 “現在，我們第一次可以看到這種污染帶來的驚人後果。”

目前1962年制定的硝酸鹽聯邦飲用水標準是百萬分之十，或ppm。然而，一些備受推崇的流行病學研究將飲用水中的硝酸鹽與癌症和其他嚴重的健康問題聯繫起來，其水平不到法定限度的十分之一。今年早些時候，環境保護局暫停了重新評估其過時的硝酸鹽標準的計劃。

EWG估計病例的五分之四是結直腸癌的發生，其餘的是卵巢癌，甲狀腺癌，腎癌和膀胱癌。自來水中的硝酸鹽也與嚴重的新生兒健康問題有關。 EWG估計，硝酸鹽污染可導致多達2,939例極低出生體重; 1,725例極早產;和41例神經管畸形。

“數百萬美國人不自覺地接觸硝酸鹽，他們也是處理受污染自來水的重要成本的人，”EWG的毒理學家，該研究的主要作者Alexis Temkin博士說。 “但聯邦政府做得不夠，無法保護美國人免受自來水污染。”

EWG科學家估計，飲用水中硝酸鹽對健康沒有不良影響的水平為0.14毫克/升 – 相當於百萬分之一。這個水平比EPA的法定限制低70倍，代表了百萬分之一的癌症風險。

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環境工作組是一個非營利性，無黨派的組織，它使人們能夠在更健康的環境中過上更健康的生活。通過研究，宣傳和獨特的教育工具，EWG推動消費者選擇和公民行動。訪問http://www.ewg.org了解更多信息。

News Release 11-Jun-2019

EWG: Nitrate pollution of US tap water could cause 12,500 cancer cases each year

Groundbreaking peer-reviewed study analyzes health and economic impacts of widespread chemical contamination from agriculture

Environmental Working Group

WASHINGTON – Nitrate pollution of U.S. drinking water may cause up to 12,594 cases of cancer a year, according to a new peer-reviewed study by the Environmental Working Group.

For the groundbreaking study, published today in the journal Environmental Research, EWG scientists estimated the number of cancer cases in each state that could be attributed to nitrate contamination of public water systems, largely caused by farm runoff containing fertilizer and manure. They also estimated the costs of treating those cases at up to $1.5 billion a year.

“Nitrate contamination of drinking water is a serious problem, and especially severe in the nation’s farm country,” said Olga Naidenko, Ph.D., EWG senior science advisor and one of the study’s authors. “Now, for the first time, we can see the staggering consequences of this pollution.”

The current federal drinking water standard for nitrate, set in 1962, is 10 parts per million, or ppm. Yet several well-regarded epidemiological studies have linked nitrate in drinking water with cancer and other serious health issues at levels less than one-tenth of the legal limit. Earlier this year, the Environmental Protection Agency suspended plans to reevaluate its outdated nitrate standard.

Four-fifths of EWG’s estimated cases were occurences of colorectal cancer, with ovarian, thyroid, kidney and bladder cancer making up the rest. Nitrate in tap water has also been linked with serious neonatal health issues. EWG estimated that nitrate pollution may be responsible for as many as 2,939 cases of very low birth weight; 1,725 cases of very preterm birth; and 41 cases of neural tube defects.

“Millions of Americans are being involuntarily exposed to nitrate, and they are also the ones paying the heavy costs of treating contaminated tap water,” said Alexis Temkin, Ph.D., a toxicologist at EWG and primary author of the study. “But the federal government is not doing enough to protect Americans from tap water contamination.”

EWG scientists estimate the level at which there would occur no adverse health effects from nitrate in drinking water to be 0.14 milligrams per liter – equivalent to parts per million. That level, 70 times lower than the EPA’s legal limit, represents a one-in-one-million risk of cancer.

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The Environmental Working Group is a nonprofit, non-partisan organization that empowers people to live healthier lives in a healthier environment. Through research, advocacy and unique education tools, EWG drives consumer choice and civic action. Visit http://www.ewg.org for more.