By Renee Sharp and J. Paul Pestano
Water Treatment plants along the east coast are struggling to recover from superstorm Sandy, whose torrential rains washed tens of millions of gallons of raw or partially treated sewage into waterways.
The less dramatic but equally urgent story: inside those waterworks, and others across the nation, chlorine, added as a disinfectant to kill disease- causing microganisms in dirty source water, is reacting with rotting organic matter like sewage, manure from livestock, dead animals and fallen leaves to form toxic chemicals that are potentially harmful to people.
Related Reading:
Water Treatment Contaminants: Forgotten Toxics in American Water
