Abstract
This review presents water quality criteria for livestock adopted by different countries/states and discusses how those limit values are established. The method used was a literature data survey, available in the electronic pages of regulatory agencies of different countries or states. Livestock water quality criteria for chemical substances adopted by different countries/states, including Brazil (CONAMA 357 e 396), were compared. Information about the main factors can influence the derivation of livestock water quality criteria were highlighted. The analysis of the Brazilian surface water regulation, which is based on multiple uses, indicated that some standards are not appropriate for livestock use. Great variation was observed for the choice of priority substances and the water quality criteria among the different countries/states were analyzed, confirming the need for the establishment of criteria for each country, considering the use and importance of substances and specific exposure scenarios. From the compiled date it is possible to observe that water criteria for livestock have not been yet established for several chemicals, suggesting that more studies are needed in Brazil.
Highlights
The importance of good quality water as a nutrient essential to animals has often been underestimated
After obtaining the toxicological information, it is calculated for each animal species the tolerable daily intake rate (TDI) for the toxic parameter in question, in mg kg-1 day-1 through the lowest-observed-adverse-effect-level (LOAEL), no-adverse-effect-level (NOAEL) and an uncertainty factor (UF) generally equal to 10, according to the following formula: TDI = (LOAEL x NOAEL)0.5/ UF
The maximum allowable values for chemicals in water used in livestock watering are generally derived from toxicological data in relation to animal species that integrate livestock production of each scenario and region, of body weight of the species, daily water intake rate per individual and an uncertainty factor
Summary
The importance of good quality water as a nutrient essential to animals has often been underestimated. The maintenance of water quality for this purpose is important to preserve the animal health, to ensure human health and the economy on food production. The literature indicates that the presence of toxic substances in concentrations above the allowed in the water consumed by animals can decrease the production of meat, fat, eggs, milk, reduce fertility, and pose a risk to animal and human health due to the ingestion of residues possibly. In several regions of the world it has been observed a high concentration of fluoride in the drinking water of animals. Choubisa (1999) found the dental and skeletal fluorosis in cattle and buffaloes in the region of India where the fluoride concentration in water ranged from 1.5 to 4.0 mg L-1. Lameness in the pelvic limb, rigidity and exostoses were observed in animals with advanced age and subjected to fluoride concentration of 2.8 mg L-1. Shupe et al (1984) observed that in the United States, deer, elk and bison had dental and skeletal
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