Water Quality Standards

Summary information extracted from: Guidelines for drinking-water quality, 2nd ed. - Vol. 1. Recommendations. - Geneva, World Health Organization, 1993. p. 59.

1,2-Dichloroethane is used mainly as an intermediate in the production of vinyl chloride and other chemicals and to a lesser extent as a solvent. It has been found in drinking-water at levels of up to a few micrograms per litre. It is found in urban air.

IARC has classified 1,2-dichloroethane in Group 2B. It has been shown to produce statistically significant increases in a number of tumour types in laboratory animals, including the relatively rare haemangiosarcoma, and the balance of evidence indicates that it is potentially genotoxic. There are no suitable long-term studies on which to base a TDI.

On the basis of haemangiosarcomas observed in male rats in a 78-week gavage study, and applying the linearized multistage model, a guideline value for drinking-water of 30 µg/litre, corresponding to an excess lifetime cancer risk of 10-5, was calculated.