Household appliances and personal items in contact with water supply are subject to physical damages from chemical and other constituents of the water. This study translates these damages into economic losses for a typical household. Then it aggregates these losses at the national and individual state levels. To do so requires several stages of analysis. First, the types of physical damages expected and associated water quality determinants are identified. The physical effects are next translated into economic losses. Second, damage functions are formulated to predict likely impacts of water quality changes on each household unit affected. Third, a computer program based on these functions is designed to estimate total damages per typical household and to aggregate them over selected regions. Finally, the program is applied to state-to-state data on water supply sources and socioeconomic descriptors. Total damages to U.S. residents in 1970 are estimated in the range, $0.65-$3.45 billion, with a mean of $1.75 billion. The mean translates into $8.60 per person. States contributing most to total damages are California ($230 million) and Illinois ($164 million). (Modified author abstract)

"July 1973." "Program Element 1HA094." Includes bibliographical references (pages 73-76).