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Microplastics hack the water supply system: What it means for water safety and human health?
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This review traced microplastics through the entire water supply chain, from source water to the tap, and found that daily human intake through drinking water is rapidly increasing. The study suggests that water treatment infrastructure, including disinfection chemicals and aging pipes, can actually transform microplastics in ways that increase their health risks.
Water supply systems-spanning from water sources to treatment plants, distribution networks, and ultimately consumers-function as both significant sources and sinks of microplastic pollution. Due to factors such as light exposure, mechanical force of water flow and chemical corrosion by disinfectants, microplastics (MPs) undergo a series of transformations, thereby posing a higher water safety risk. Nevertheless, the distribution of MPs within water supply systems and their potential risks to water safety remain to be fully understood and systematically reviewed. This review provides the first comprehensive synthesis that traces MPs across the entire water supply chain-from source to consumer-to quantitatively link global occurrence, transformation risks, and potential health implications. A comprehensive analysis of MPs abundance in global drinking water sources, tap water, and bottled water from global data (Web of Science Core Collection, up to 2025) revealed a rapidly escalating daily intake of MPs through drinking water, with structural equation modeling identifying the Human Development Index and wastewater treatment rate as key predictors of global microplastic distribution. Beyond occurrence, a cascade of underappreciated risks arising from microplastic persistence and transformation in water supply systems was critically examined-including enhanced disinfection by-product formation, additive leaching, contaminant carrier effects, and human exposure. By integrating evidence on microplastic transformation, aging, leaching, and exposure, this review establishes a conceptual link between microplastic environmental behavior and population-level health implications, offering a mechanistic perspective on risks posed by MPs in water supply systems. The synthesis provides a scientific foundation to guide future research, policy-making, and standard-setting for emerging contaminants in drinking water.
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Microplastics in drinking water distribution systems: Occurrence, environmental behavior, and human health concerns
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This review examines how microplastics move through drinking water distribution systems, from treatment plants all the way to household taps. Despite treatment efforts, microplastics persist in the water supply, with plastic pipes and fittings themselves contributing additional contamination. The tiny particles also serve as carriers for harmful bacteria and other pollutants, compounding the health risks of microplastic-contaminated drinking water.
Microplastic Transportation in a Typical Drinking Water Supply: From Raw Water to Household Water
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Researchers tracked microplastics through an entire drinking water system, from the source water to household taps, and found that treatment plants actually increased microplastic counts rather than removing them. The treated water contained 12 to 25 particles per liter, with most being tiny fragments under 100 micrometers made of common plastics like PET and PVC. This suggests that current water treatment infrastructure may be shedding microplastics from its own pipes and filters into the water people drink.
Abundance and characteristics of microplastics in drinking water treatment plants, distribution systems, water from refill kiosks, tap waters and bottled waters
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This review summarizes research on microplastic contamination across the entire drinking water supply chain, from treatment plants to tap water and bottled water. Microplastics were found at every stage, with concentrations varying widely depending on location and treatment methods. The findings highlight that people are regularly consuming microplastics through their drinking water, though more standardized research is needed to fully understand the health implications.
Microplastics in Drinking Water: A Review of Sources, Removal, Detection, Occurrence, and Potential Risks
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This review examines how microplastics enter drinking water supply systems, evaluates methods for their detection and removal, and summarizes what is known about their occurrence in treated water. Researchers found that while conventional water treatment removes a significant portion of microplastics, no current method eliminates them completely. The study highlights the need for improved monitoring standards and further research into the long-term health effects of ingesting microplastics through drinking water.
Occurrence and distribution of microplastics in water supply systems: In water and pipe scales
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Researchers found microplastics present throughout drinking water supply systems, both in treated water and accumulated within pipe scales, with concentrations in pipe scales being significantly higher than in the water itself.
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