Technical Factsheet on: COPPER

List of Contaminants

As part of the Drinking Water and Health pages, this fact sheet is part of a larger publication:
National Primary Drinking Water Regulations

Drinking Water Standards

MCLG: 1.3 mg/L

Action Level: > 1.3 mg/L in 10 percent or more of tap water samples
HAL(child): none

Health Effects Summary

Acute and Chronic: Copper is an essential nutrient, but at high doses it has been shown to cause
stomach and intestinal distress, liver and kidney damage, and anemia. Persons with Wilson's disease
may be at a higher risk of health effects due to copper than the general public.

Cancer: There is inadequate evidence to state whether or not copper has the potential to cause cancer
from a lifetime exposure in drinking water.

Usage Patterns

Copper occurs in drinking water primarily due to its use in plumbing materials.

Occurrence in Source Water and Distributed Water. Copper levels above the MCLG are rarely found in
raw drinking water supplies or in distributed water. EPA estimates that only 66 water systems have
copper levels in source water greater than the MCLG.

Occurrence as a Corrosion By- Product. The primary source of copper in drinking water is corrosion of
copper pipes, which are widely used throughout the United States for interior plumbing of residences and
other buildings. In some cases, copper is a component of additives to drinking water used by systems to
control the growth of algae.

Release Patterns

Although copper rarely occurs in source water, the following natural and artificial sources have been
identified. Copper is widely distributed in nature in the elemental state, in sulfides, arsenites, chlorides,
and carbonates. The element is only superficially oxidized in air, sometimes giving a green coating of
hydroxy carbonate and hydroxy sulfate. The concentration of copper in the continental crust, generally
estimated at 50 ppm, tends to be highest in the ferromagnesium minerals, such as the basalts pyropene
and biotite, where it averages 140 ppm. Sandstones contain 10-40 ppm, shales 30-150 ppm, and marine
black shales 20-300 ppm. Coal is relatively low in copper.

In the sedimentary cycle copper is concentrated in the clay mineral fractions with a slight enrichment in
those clays rich in organic carbon.

Smelting operations and municipal incineration may also produce copper. Water and pasture have been
found to be contaminated with copper in the vicinity of copper mines or smelting works. The principal
source of elevated copper levels in air is copper dust generated by copper processing operations.


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From 1987 to 1993, according to the Toxics Release Inventory copper compound releases to land and
water totalled nearly 450 million lbs., of which nearly all was to land. These releases were primarily from
copper smelting industries. The largest releases occurred in Utah. The largest direct releases to water
occurred in Tennessee.

Environmental Fate

As with lead, all water is corrosive toward copper to some degree, even water termed noncorrosive or
water treated to make it less corrosive. Corrosivity toward copper depends primarily on the pH of the
water, with very low pHs associated with the highest levels of copper corrosion by-products. Many of the
other factors that affect the corrosivity of water toward lead can also be expected to affect the corrosion of
copper.

Chemical/Physical Properties

CAS Number: 7440-50-8 (metal)

Color/Form/Odor: Reddish metal which may occur in water as copper salts, the most common of which
are the chloride, nitrate and sulfate salts.

Soil sorption coefficient: N/A

Solubilities (g/L water at 20 deg C): Chloride, 770; Nitrate, 1250; Sulfate, 207.

Bioconcentration Factor: N/A

Common Ores: Found as sulfides, arsenites, chlorides, and carbonates in the following ores:
Chalcopyrite, Chalcocite, Bornite, Tetrahedrite, Enargite, Antlerite

Other Regulatory Information

Monitoring:

Sampling Site:

Monitoring Period:

Initial

After corrosion
control installation
Reduced monitoring

-	Conditional

-	Final

For Copper

At Home Taps

Every 6 months
Every 6 months

Once a year
Every 3 years

For Water Quality Parameters

Within the
Distribution
System

Every 6 months
Every 6 months

At Entry to the

Distribution

System

Every 6 months
Every 2 weeks

Every 6 months
Every 3 years

Every 2 weeks
Every 2 weeks

Analysis

Reference Source	Method Number

EPA 800/4-83-043	220.2; 220.1

Standard Methods	3111 -B; 3120

Treatment/Best Available Technologies

Source water: Ion exchange; lime softening; reverse osmosis; coagulation/filtration

Corrosion Control: pH and alkalinity adjustment; calcium adjustment; silica- or phosphate-based corrosion
inhibition


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Toxic Release Inventory - Releases to Water and Land, 1987 to 1993 (in pounds):

TOTALS
Top Ten States *

Water
1,538,148

Land

442,082,245

UT
NM
AZ

55,350
0

2,636
19,763
66,57
0

153,501,500

130,682,387

104,619,532

11,172,897

10,017,766

8,696,153

Ml

NY
MT
TN
MO
AL
MD

Major Industries*

Primary copper smelting
Other nonferrous smelt.
Plastic materials
Blast furnaces, steel
Poultry slaughtering
Copper rolling, drawing
Ind. organic chems
Prepared feeds, misc.
Ind. inorganic chems

301,417
250

41,213
78,601

1,208,804
1,486,000
513,536
270,945

7,591

4,414

44,422

156,982

0

17,253
28,936
1,038
220,503

201,214,264
11,317,048

9,637,850

3,229,752

1,249,750

941,075

827,356

760,094

527,458

* State/Industry totals only include facilities with releases greater than a certain amount - usually 1000 to
10,000 lbs.

For Additional Information:

EPA can provide further regulatory and other general information:

EPA Safe Drinking Water Hotline - 800/426-4791

Other sources of toxicological and environmental fate data include:

Toxic Substance Control Act Information Line - 202/554-1404
Toxics Release Inventory, National Library of Medicine - 301/496-6531
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry - 404/639-6000


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