Contaminated Drinking Water

Atrazine, the most common weed killer for crops, lawns & golf courses has now shown up in water supplies as a contaminant of reservoirs and aquifers. Newest research indicates it is dangerous at much lower levels than previously thought.

According to the Hazardous Substances Database, Atrazine is the second most common pesticide found in private wells and in community wells.

As early as 1990, the EPA's National Survey of Pesticieds in Drinking Water Wells indicated trace amounts
had been found in drinking water samples and in groundwater samples in numerous states across the nation.


Each year more than 60,000 tons of Atrazie are applied in America. It can take weeks to several months for the chemical to degrade in the soil. However, if it migrates to the groundwater degradation is virtually nil. In surface waters, Atrazine can persist more than 2/3 of a year.

Only recently has the EPA restricted use of Atrizine to certified applicators. But the chemical is already in our soils and water. In the atmosphere, Atrazine adheres to particulate matter and has been known to travel great distances in winds. Studies have shown detection levels greater than 180 miles from it's nearest application site.

Atrazine readily absorbs through the gastrointestinal tract and causes irreversible damage to the human liver, kidney & heart. Animal studies have shown that it causes irregular ovarian cycling and alters plasma hormone levels. Other studies showed that these changes were attributed to disruptions in the gonadal-hypothalamic-
pituitary axis resulting in high estrogen levels and therefore a lack of ovulation. Yet other studies with different strains of rats indicated elevated progesterone levels resulting in false-pregnancies and lengthened ovulation times. Studies in higher mammals, pigs, resulted in a brief delay prior to ovulation.

Clearly, while different species of animals and even different strains of the same animal showed varying symptoms of disturbance, the majority of the animals studied still indicated adverse effects to the reproductive cycle. The problem with equating the animal data to humans is that the estrus cycle in animals
involves different consequences of the hormone levels that that which occurs in humans.

Adverse developmental effects have been demonstrated in both rats and rabbits resulting in failure to conceive, failure to carry to term, and both decreased litter size and live birth. Also indicated were
increased prenatal loss & decreased birth weight which may be due to maternal toxicity.

Other adverse developmental effects in animals include delayed vaginal opening, first estrus (menstruation) & delayed uterine growth in female rats. Male rats showed lower prostate weight, increased inflammation of the prostate and increased prostate hormone levels indicative of acute coronary syndrome.

Atrazine has been positively associated with adverse effects in the development of the nervous system of rats, incomplete development of the skull, teeth, and the equivalent of the fingers & toes in direct offspring.

Atrazine has been positively associated with developmental effects in humans, specifically, intrauterine growth retardation and urogenital, cardiac and limb reduction defects from just 2.2 micrograms per liter in drinking water. New studies have also indicated that very low levels of Atrizine in drinking water can cause adverse effects in humans & animals.

The Agency for Toxic Substances & Diseases Registry claims that not enough studies have been conducted to know if children are affected in the same way as adults. Since we do know that children have less developed immune systems and less developed organs than adults, how could anyone even think that they wouldn't be adversely affected and at an even greater risk than an adult. Simple common sense should indicate that.

Here again we are at risk because of animal rights activists that denounce animal testing. Our past mistakes with chemicals should be enough to indicate that all chemicals should be rigorously tested on animals and in a controlled environment before licensing for everyday use. Too few people read labels and follow directions to the letter, thereby endangering all. Please read your labels! It cannot be stressed enough.

National Agriculture Statistics indicate that the following states have potentially high levels of Atrazine:

State                                                Pounds applied in 2001
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Illinois                                                 12,409,000 - 14,158,000
Indiana & Iowa                                    7,162,000 - 8,911,000
Nebraska                                            5,413,000 - 7,162,000
Ohio & Kansas                                   3,664,000 - 5,413,000
Missouri, Minnosota, Michigan            1,915,000 - 3,664,000
Wisconsin, Texas,
South Dakota, Pennsylvania,
New York, North Dakota,
North Carolina, Kentucky,
Georgia & Colorado                            1,915,000 - 166,000
Several other states                         smaller to trace amounts
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You can protect yourself from Atrizine in your drinking water.

Simply filter your water through activated charcoal like in a Britta filter or other such filtration system.

Stay happy, stay healthy!

Karen