The Environmental Protection Agency released a new study this week showing that water supplies on 17.2% of 169 randomly selected aircraft were contaminated with “total coliform bacteria”.
Media outlets were quick to react. The Miami Herald ran an article January 20 highlighting the finding that planes in Miami tested worse than any other U.S. airport. The Denver Post also jumped on the bandwagon, leading their article with “Asking for bottled water or a canned drink aboard an airliner might be best for now.” More than 400 media outlets had picked up the story within 24 hours of the EPA’s announcement.
The Air Transport Association, an industry trade group, has released its own statement declaring aircraft water safe. A spokesperson for the association said, “Once again, the EPA chose to include samples from aircraft lavatories, which are essentially public restrooms, where there’s a high potential for cross-contamination of samples. We’re also concerned that many of the samples came from international carriers that the agency does not regulate.”
The EPA seemed to agree with the association, stating in its own FAQ section that “The presence of total coliform, in and of itself, is not indicative of a health risk. Coliform bacteria will not likely cause illness. However, the presence of coliform bacteria in drinking water indicates that other disease-causing organisms (pathogens) may be present in the water system.”
For now, treating water on an aircraft as one would any shared and public water supply seems the best course of action. Since most airlines serve bottled water, worried consumers may want to skip asking for ice. The EPA also recommends this course of action, stating, “Passengers with suppressed immune systems or others concerned should request bottled or canned beverages while on the aircraft and refrain from drinking tea or coffee that does not use bottled water.”
Posted under Health, Safety, Travel
This post was written by George Bounacos on January 21, 2005
