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Global Permissible Limits of Emerging Contaminants
Summary
Global regulatory limits for emerging contaminants — including microplastics, PFAS, pharmaceuticals, and endocrine disruptors — remain fragmented and inconsistent across countries, with most lacking enforceable standards despite documented chronic health effects. Harmonizing international thresholds and adopting a One Health framework are identified as essential steps to translate growing scientific evidence on microplastic risks into protective policy.
Emerging contaminants (ECs) pose an ever-growing risk to global water security and public health. This chapter provides a comprehensive, critical account of contemporary country-level and global permissible limits for ECs in water, integrating the latest science, technology, and policy. ECs such as pharmaceuticals, PFAS, microplastics, endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs), antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), and new industrial compounds are increasingly detected, yet laws remain fragmented and incomplete. Most are subject to provisional guidance, watch lists, or case-by-case removal mandates, unlike legacy pollutants with robust standards. Recent regulatory advances include strict PFAS thresholds (e.g. EU, USA, Canada), the EU's requirement for ≥80% removal of selected pharmaceuticals in large wastewater plants, and pioneering approaches to mixture toxicity. ECs have diverse, often chronic impacts, spanning antibiotic resistance, hormone disruption, immune depression, and ecosystem harm. While advanced water treatment offers promise, financial and operational barriers remain considerable, especially in resource-limited settings. This chapter advocates harmonized international standards, strengthened global monitoring, sustainable chemical design, and a unifying One Health framework as essential to resolve the crisis of EC pollution. Advances in science and governance must be matched by investment and inclusive, anticipatory management to ensure safe water for humanity and nature.