April 19, 2004 Hello! Do you prefer to see the glass as half-full or half-empty? "An increasing number
of people are served by community water systems that meet all health-based
drinking water standards. In 2002, states reported that 94 percent
of the population served by community water systems were served
by systems that met all health-based standards, up from 79 percent
in 1993." Half-full: Please note
that there was an improvement of 15% in just nine years, bringing
us to a level where 94% of the population of the United States served
by community water systems has access to water that meets all health-based
standards. Half-empty: As you may have noticed, as recently as 11 years ago, 21% of the population of the United States did not have access to a water system that met all health-based standards; 6% of the population still lack access. "On April 7, 2004,
Acting Assistant Administrator Benjamin Grumbles and Regional Administrator
Donald Welsh (Region 3) testified before the Senate Environment
and Public Works Committee on EPA efforts involving lead in drinking
water in Washington, D.C. Welch described Region 3's actions to
help correct current problems. Grumbles explained EPA actions to
review compliance with the 1991 Lead and Copper Rule nationally,
work with states and localities on lead in drinking water at schools
and day-care facilities, and plan workshops and other efforts to
review possible changes to existing guidance and rules." Where does it come from? How does it get there? What can we do? "When the source of
pollution can be found, it is called Point source pollution. Once
the source is identified (e.g. discharge from a sewage treatment
plant), it becomes easier to make improvements. Non-point source
(NPS) pollution, unlike pollution from industrial and sewage treatment
plants, comes from many diffuse sources. The EPA reports that NPS
pollution is a leading cause of water quality problems. Caused by
rainfall or snowmelt moving over and through the ground; the runoff
moves, picks up and carries away natural and human-made pollutants,
finally depositing them into lakes, rivers, wetlands, coastal waters,
and even our underground sources of drinking water. Other pollutants from human
sources? What about where you live? "Local Drinking Water
Information Why even bother? Why not just drink bottled water? "Sales of bottled
water in this country have exploded in recent years... But bottled
water sold in the United States is not necessarily cleaner or safer
than most tap water, according to a four-year scientific study recently
made public by NRDC [Natural Resources Defense Council]. NRDC's
study included testing of more than 1,000 bottles of 103 brands
of bottled water. While most of the tested waters were found to
be of high quality, some brands were contaminated: about one-third
of the waters tested contained levels of contamination -- including
synthetic organic chemicals, bacteria, and arsenic -- in at least
one sample that exceeded allowable limits under either state or
bottled water industry standards or guidelines.... At the national
level, the Food and Drug Administration is responsible for bottled
water safety, but the FDA's rules completely exempt waters that
are packaged and sold within the same state, which account for between
60 and 70 percent of all bottled water sold in the United States
(roughly one out of five states don't regulate these waters either).
The FDA also exempts carbonated water and seltzer, and fewer than
half of the states require carbonated waters to meet their own bottled
water standards." Even if you do not drink
plain water very often: soda, coffee, sports drinks, and many bottled
juices are just a few of the things you may drink that have water
added to them from some source. Questions of the Week: Please email me with any ideas or suggestions. I look forward to reading what you have to say. Cindy |
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