Asbestos
Overview
Asbestos fibers can enter water from the decay of older asbestos-cement water mains or natural deposits.
In Florida, Asbestos was found in 1 community water system serving about 92,219 people. It was measured by 1,559 systems in all, so it was detected in under 1% of the systems that tested for it.
The highest reading relative to the limit was at City of Fort Myers in Lee County, at 2% of it.
Where it comes from: Decay of asbestos-cement water mains; erosion of natural deposits.
The standards
Enforceable. A utility must stay at or under this.
Health-based, not enforceable. Often lower than the limit, sometimes zero.
California OEHHA PHG (2003), million fibers per liter.
Health effects the EPA associates with it: Increased risk of developing benign intestinal polyps.
The health goal is set on health alone. The legal limit is set as close to it as is technically and economically feasible, so treatment cost and available technology are written into the number a utility is measured against. A system at or under the limit is meeting the standard it is required to meet. Both numbers are shown so the distance between them is visible.
What removes it
A mechanical filter rated to one micron absolute removes asbestos fibres, as does reverse osmosis. Asbestos in tap water usually comes from deteriorating cement pipe in the distribution system rather than from the source water.
Treatment guidance describes the methods generally used for this contaminant. What your own tap actually carries depends on your plumbing and your service line as much as on the utility, which is what a test at the house tells you and an annual report cannot.
Where in Florida
Highest reported levels
Data Sources
These figures describe water as delivered by each utility, not what your home’s plumbing adds after it arrives. Informational; not a substitute for testing your own tap.