Derivation of subacute guidance values for chemical contaminants of drinking water quality standard in Japan

The concentration of chemicals in drinking water may transiently and accidently exceed the Drinking Water Quality Standard (DWQS). If the level of a contaminant is not expected to cause adverse effects for a limited period of exposure, immediate suspension of the water supply may not be necessary. Assessments should be conducted using subacute guidance values (SGVs). In this study, we assessed 26 chemicals for the DWQS to establish the SGVs. Principally, a key study was selected from subacute studies to derive a Subacute Reference Dose (saRfD). The SGV was calculated from the saRfD for adults (drinking water intakes: 40 mL/kg/day) and children (drinking water intakes: 150 mL/kg/day). No allocation factor was applied to derive the SGV. We established the SGV for 20 chemicals, which were 2-38 times higher than the corresponding DWQS. However, SGVs for six chemicals were the same as the corresponding DWQS. Therefore, immediate action will be required for these six accidental contaminants. Our established SGVs are useful for assessing accidental contamination.