The Blue Death: Disease, Disaster, and the Water We Drink

Science News, August 18, 2007

THE BLUE DEATH: Disease, Disaster, and the Water We Drink ROBERT D. MORRIS

Many people in the United States take clean drinking water for granted. Such complacency, Morris argues, could mean trouble down the road, as the water supply is threatened by ever-evolving microbes, bioterrorism, and environmental toxins. Waterborne illness still occurs, and drinking water may sicken millions of people every year in the United States. Morris, an environmental epidemiologist, looks at the history of waterborne disease, including the cholera outbreaks in London that led to John Snow's discovery of the disease's source in drinking water and the typhoid outbreaks of 19th-century Chicago. He describes early engineering efforts to guarantee clean water, including expensive and treacherous dam construction as well as environmental regulations. Morris contends that despite such efforts, the U.S. water system remains at risk from pollution, leaking water mains, and resistant microbes. Finally, Morris offers suggestions for ensuring a safe water supply, including using more-advanced water-treatment technology and making filters an integral part of the water-supply system. HarperCollins, 2007, 310 p., hardcover, $24.95.