Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) in Drinking Water
EPA limits, health effects, and what to do if your water is affected.
🩨 Health Effects
PCBs are probable human carcinogens and can harm the immune, reproductive, nervous, and endocrine systems. They accumulate in fatty tissue. Children exposed in utero may have lower IQ and developmental problems.
📍 Sources in Water
Industrial chemicals used in electrical equipment and other applications until they were banned in 1979. They persist in the environment for decades and enter water from contaminated industrial sites, hazardous waste, and sediment disturbance.
✅ What To Do
Activated carbon and reverse osmosis can remove PCBs. Violations in public water systems are uncommon but can occur near former industrial sites or in areas with contaminated sediment.
Check your tap water for Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs)
Search your ZIP code to see if your water system has had Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) 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.