WHO/SDE/WSH/03.04/115
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Inorganic Tin in Drinking-water
Background document for development of
WHO Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality
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The concentration of tin in rivers, estuaries and oceans is generally less than 5 ng/litre, but the use of organotin biocides can produce significantly higher concentrations (e.g., 26–91 ng/litre near the coast of California, USA; 200–3300 ng/litre in Lake Michigan, USA) (Magos, 1986). In seawater, levels of 0.3–980 ng/litre have been found. In rivers, levels were usually 6–10 ng/litre, but a concentration of 300 ng/litre was found in the Rhine (Weber, 1985).
Levels of <42–295 ìg/litre were found in 37 different bottled mineral waters (Allen et al., 1989). A mean range of 1.1–2.2 ìg/litre (maximum 30 ìg/litre) was found in a survey of water supplies in the USA. Values greater than 1–2 ìg/litre are exceptional (WHO, 1980).