US researchers have developed a method of treating waste water
that is effective in stripping out hormonal compounds thought to
arise from the use and manufacturing of contraceptives and other
pharmaceutical and industrial products. The purity of water is
something that most people in the developed world take for
granted. Water companies operate highly sophisticated processes
to give us the water we expect. However pharmaceutical residues
may be one area in which their processes are not so effective.
There has been an increase in the level of oestrogens in water
supplies since the wide use of the contraceptive pill began in
the 1960s. Hormones by their very nature are supposed to have
their biological effects at low concentration (effects can be
seen at parts per trillion levels) and these effects have been
noticed. Several scientific studies have shown changes in the
sex of animals in the wild due to the excretion of waste
endocrine active substances (EASs). EASs are man-made substances
such as synthetic hor