Whether it’s as one of the first forms of life on Earth or all over someone after they step foot into their kids’ daycare, bacteria are nothing if not prompt. The term encompasses a huge number of microorganisms, and not all bacteria are bad, but when we’re talking about getting rid of bacteria in your drinking water, you can trust that we’re talking about the bad kind.
By definition, brackish water is the slightly salty mixture of river water and seawater in estuaries. It’s not safe to drink and it’s not fun to swim in. Due to global warming, this type of water is becoming more prevalent and will eventually pose a threat to clean water in coastal cities.
When Ozone (used to disinfect drinking water) reacts with Bromide from source water, it creates Bromate, a substance known to cause cancer. Bromate caused some stir in the 2000s, first in 2004 when its discovery in Dasani water caused Coca-Cola to issue a recall in the UK, and again in 2008 and 2009 when the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power had to drain several lake reservoirs due to bromate contamination.