Chicago's Water Supply One Big Pharmaceutical Question Mark?

Some of us may have read about the pharmaceutical cocktail that likely awaits us at our faucets. This drug contamination in the nations water supply is by no means limited to major City limits but likely stretches outside to the major metropolitan areas. The ABC and the New York Times have some pretty good coverage. Still, as Hal Zenick of the EPA's office of research and development put it in an e-mail message to the New York Times, “there is uncertainty as to the risk to humans.”

Chicago, in its infinite fear opted out of testing. Recently, Rod insisted that Ravenswood get tested in an effort to verify whether sleeping pills, among other compounds, may have kept Blagojevic from making more trips to Springfield. However, there is a known solution to this mess; a reverse osmosis ["RO"] water filtration system. Frankly, even WebMD admits, "The water supply has a drug problem."

Some fear the cost to purify water, but for less than $500 a 50 gallon RO unit and tank can be yours. That is cheap insurance. There remains uncertainty about the long term consequences of trace and ongoing unneeded anti-biotic exposure. The RO process completely eliminates pharmaceuticals from the water supply according to well placed sources. However, you must replace the filters every year or two. Otherwise, you may ruin the membrane. Even the filter replacement cost is minimal when compared to the benefits. We have owned a Culligan RO unit since 1990 and the new non-Culligan units are half the price and twice the capacity of the older ones.

For some of our more pessimistic Rogers Park blogging community, the prozac and zantac may prove to be welcome additions to their households. Again, there is a solution worth considering, where you don't want the city's runoff of anabolic steroids to leach into your barley soup.

Consider Culligan, but I am sure that there are other vendors. Culligant rents units, but it also sells them at what once seemed like premium prices.

Again. For those who wish to bulk up on your water, then wait for Mayor Delay and the City Clown Cell to figure out how to deal with the waste water generated by RO. For those who want to invest in a healthy future, consider purchasing an RO unit on your own.