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Validation of drinking water disinfection by-product exposure assessment for rural areas in the National Children’s Study

Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology volume 25, pages 303–307 (2015)Cite this article

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Abstract

The objective of this study was to provide evidence to evaluate the proposed National Children’s Study (NCS) protocol for household water sampling in rural study areas. Day-to-day variability in total trihalomethane (TTHM) concentrations in community water supplies (CWS) in rural areas was determined, and the correlation between TTHM concentrations from household taps and CWS monitoring reports was evaluated. Daily water samples were collected from 7 households serviced by 7 different CWS for 15 days. Coefficients of variation for TTHM concentration over 15 days ranged from 8% to 20% depending on the household. Correlations were tested between TTHM household concentrations and the closest date- and location-matched CWS monitoring reports for the 15-day mean (R=0.85, P<0.01). To simulate the NCS-proposed protocol, correlations were tested for 30 additional NCS household samples (polynomial fit: R=0.74, P=0.04). CWS reported TTHM concentrations >50 μg/l corresponded to measured NCS household concentrations ranging from 2 to 60 μg/l. TTHM concentrations were higher in CWS than NCS samples (11.2±3.2 μg/l, mean difference±SE, P<0.01). These results show that in rural areas there is high variability within households and poor correlation at higher concentrations, suggesting that TTHM concentrations from CWS monitoring reports are not an accurate measure of exposure in the household.

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Acknowledgements

We appreciate the contributions of Kristen Malecki and Maureen Durkin from the University of Wisconsin Study Center, Madison, Wisconsin, and Michael Dellarco from NIH/NICHD for assistance in obtaining NCS test results. This analysis was conducted as part of the National Children’s Study, supported in part by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, and funded, through its appropriation, by the Office of the Director of the National Institutes of Health. This project was supported, in part, by NICHD Contract Numbers HHSN275200603416C and HHSN275201100004C, and the Ethel Austin Martin Endowment at South Dakota State University. The views expressed in this article are the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the position of the National Children’s Study, the National Institutes of Health, or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. EA Martin Program in Human Nutrition, South Dakota State University, Brookings, South Dakota, USA

    Teresa L Binkley & Bonny L Specker

  2. Biology and Microbiology Department, South Dakota State University, Brookings, South Dakota, USA

    Natalie W Thiex

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  1. Teresa L Binkley
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  2. Natalie W Thiex
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  3. Bonny L Specker
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Correspondence to Bonny L Specker.

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Binkley, T., Thiex, N. & Specker, B. Validation of drinking water disinfection by-product exposure assessment for rural areas in the National Children’s Study. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol 25, 303–307 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/jes.2014.51

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/jes.2014.51

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