Chlorination to polluted water can produce chlorocompounds which may impair human health. It has been discussed that chlorophenols would be one of undesirable substances in drinking water. This study was undertaken to investigate the production mechanism of chlorophenols by chlorination in the disinfection of water and to determine pollution levels of phenols as precursor of chlorophenols and chloropbenols in some sewage, stream water and tap water in the vicinity of Seoul from January to September, 1979. By chlorination with hyperchlorite to phenols in distilled water, o-chlorophenol was predominantly produced at the concentration of less than 10ppm of free chlorine. o-Chlorophenol, 2,6-dichlorophenol and 2,4-dichlorophenol were also produced by chlorination with the concenration from 20 to 100ppm of free chlorine. From the concentration of 100ppm of free chlorine to 200ppm, o-Chlorophenol was vanished and 2,6-dichlorophenol and 2,4-dichlorophenol were determined. Phenols originated from night soil, municipal sewage and stream were determined at 49.15 ppm. 0.095 ppm and 0.003 ppm in average respectively. About 87 and 88 percent of phenols in sewage and night soil were biodegradated by aeration for 10 days and 74 and 51 percent of phenols in sewage and night soil by spontaneous settling for 10 days. From the tap water in Seoul during summer, 1979, chlorophenols were identified; they were average 0.042 ppb of o-chlorophenol, 0.033 ppb of 2, 6-dichlorophenol and 0.003 ppb of 2, 4-dichlorophenol respectively. With the above result and discussion, it is considered that chlorophenols should be controlled from the source as well as chlorination in water purification.