Chicago water: In public reports, city silent over sex hormones and painkillers found in treated drinking water

Annual water quality reports mailed to Chicagoans this month didn't say a word about sex hormones, painkillers or anti-cholesterol drugs, even though city officials found traces of pharmaceuticals and other unregulated substances in treated Lake Michigan water during the past year. Like other cities, Chicago must notify the public if its drinking water contains certain regulated contaminants, including lead, pesticides and harmful bacteria. But pharmaceutical chemicals, which have been detected in drinking water across the country, are not on that list. So Mayor Richard Daley is technically correct in stating that the "pure, fresh drinking water" pumped to 7 million people in Chicago and the suburbs "meets or exceeds all regulatory standards."