Before the discovery of the adverse health hazards of lead to the human body it was utilized in the manufacturing of everyday household objects, just as aluminum and steel are used today in making cooking utensils. In fact, Lead pipes/waterworks were quite abundant up until the mid 20th century and are still present in numerous old buildings. This is a problem because the Lead from the pipe contaminates the water flowing through it, even though Under normal circumstances lead does not react with water, nevertheless when it makes contact with moist air, it’s reactivity escalates. This is represented in the following reaction:
2Pb(s)+ O2(g) + 2H2O(l) -> 2 Pb(OH)2(s)
This shows us the the lead reacts with the oxygen in air and water to form lead hydroxide, which is somewhat corrosive in nature and causes damage to the major organ systems of the human body. Another major source of lead contamination was mining; i.e. when silver or other ores were mined lead was a byproduct which usually contaminated the soil and in turn the water table when it rained or when mines near rivers were flooded.
Until recent years (in some cases it still is), lead had been widely used in paints as a pigment or as a base, this lead mixed in with the water table when it rained because the paint ran off with the water ultimately ending up in our drinking water supply. Conversely organic lead was also pragmatically used in petroleum products ending up as a major source of lead because as the fuel was used the lead was released into the atmosphere which in turn mixed in with the water table/drinking water when it rained.
Recent Studies have shown that Lead in drinking water reduces the IQ of the consumer especially in children below the age of six, furthermore; overexposure to lead can cause: colics, skin pigmentation, paralysis, lead poisoning, necrosis of neurons, axonal degeneration, demyelination, cerebral edema and congestion.
Asad Ilyas.
