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Contaminant
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Potential Health Effects from Long-Term Exposure Above the MCL (unless specified as short-term)
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Sources of Contaminant in Drinking Water
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Cryptosporidium
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cryptosporidium_parvum
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Gastrointestinal illness (e.g., diarrhea, vomiting, cramps)
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Human and animal fecal waste
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Giardia lamblia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giardia_lamblia
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Gastrointestinal illness (e.g., diarrhea, vomiting, cramps)
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Human and animal fecal waste
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Heterotrophic plate count
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HPC has no health effects; it is an analytic method used to measure the variety of bacteria that are common in water. The lower the concentration of bacteria in drinking water, the better maintained the water system is.
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HPC measures a range of bacteria that are naturally present in the environment
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Legionella
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legionella
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Legionnaire's Disease, a type of pneumonia
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Found naturally in water; multiplies in heating systems
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Total Coliforms (including fecal coliform and E. Coli)
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Not a health threat in itself; it is used to indicate whether other potentially harmful bacteria may be present 5
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Coliforms are naturally present in the environment; as well as feces; fecal coliforms and E. coli only come from human and animal fecal waste.
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Turbidity
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turbidity
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Turbidity is a measure of the cloudiness of water. It is used to indicate water quality and filtration effectiveness (e.g., whether disease-causing organisms are present). Higher turbidity levels are often associated with higher levels of disease-causing microorganisms such as viruses, parasites and some bacteria. These organisms can cause symptoms such as nausea, cramps, diarrhea, and associated headaches.
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Soil runoff
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Viruses (enteric)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viruses
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Gastrointestinal illness (e.g., diarrhea, vomiting, cramps)
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Human and animal fecal waste
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