Persistent and Mobile Organic Contaminants in Greater Boston Drinking and Surface Water

A 2026 pilot study quantified and annotated persistent and mobile organic contaminants (PMOCs) in water samples from the Greater Boston area, Massachusetts, USA. The dataset, created by Katherine Poisson, includes quantification of 19 targeted analytes and nontarget analysis annotating 191 compounds in drinking water. It reports 12 newly identified level 2+ drinking water contaminants and finds 50 common contaminants across tap, bottled, and surface water sources.

Use Cases

• Quantifying known persistent organic contaminants based on targeted analysis of 19 analytes.
• Discovering previously unknown water contaminants based on nontarget analysis annotations.
• Comparing contaminant profiles between drinking water and surface water sources based on cross-referenced data.
• Assessing the prevalence of disinfection byproducts based on the detection of halogenated methanesulfonic acids.

Strengths

• Includes quantification data for 19 targeted analytes, with TFA estimated at hundreds of ng/L in tap water.
• Nontarget analysis annotated 191 total compounds in drinking water, including 12 level 1 and 32 level 2 identifications.
• Cross-referenced surface and drinking water data to identify 50 common contaminants, providing comparative insights.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Geographic scope is limited to a pilot study in the Greater Boston area.

Provenance

Source

Katherine Poisson via figshare.

Collection Method

Analytical workflow based on sample enrichment by evaporative concentration and chromatographic separation by zwitterion-HILIC.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-05-18 06:05:00.

Geography

Greater Boston area, Massachusetts, USA.