DBCP (1,2-Dibromo-3-chloropropane) in Drinking Water
EPA limits, health effects, and what to do if your water is affected.
🩨 Health Effects
DBCP is a probable human carcinogen. It caused sterility in male workers who handled it and may cause reproductive harm at lower levels. Also associated with liver and kidney damage.
📍 Sources in Water
A soil fumigant banned in the 1970s after causing sterility in factory workers. Residues persist in agricultural groundwater decades after application. Elevated levels are still found in California's Central Valley and other former agricultural regions.
✅ What To Do
Activated carbon filtration and reverse osmosis can remove DBCP. Private well owners in former pineapple, cotton, or soybean growing areas should test their water. DBCP violations still occur occasionally in California.
Check your tap water for DBCP (1,2-Dibromo-3-chloropropane)
Search your ZIP code to see if your water system has had DBCP (1,2-Dibromo-3-chloropropane) violations, plus lead testing results and an overall safety grade.
Search your ZIP code →Data from the EPA's Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS). MCLs reflect minimum federal standards; some contaminants may pose health risks below these thresholds.