Drinking Water Quality

Dear Residents, I am pleased to announce that the drinking water produced and delivered to your home by more than 350 utility professionals is clean and safe for consumption. This 2012 Drinking Water Quality Report provides important information on the thousands of water quality tests administered over the previous year. As you will note, the water we provide from aquifers deep under our County exceeds all Federal standards for drinking water quality and safety.

In the selection of the parameters and their concentrations, the following were considered in Cambodia: resources, water quality, epidemiological data, industrial activity, pesticides usage and imports, cultural habits, and climate. The drinking water quality standards are in Tables I to 5. In Table I are indicators of microbial contamination of water to indicate presence of from bacteria, protozoa, viruses and helminths. Table 2 provides inorganic constituents such as heavy metals of health significance. Table 3 lists the organic constituents of health significance to drinking water while Table 4 contains the physical and chemical quality that may rise to consumer complaints if exceeded. Table 5 provides the priority parameters to be monitored in small water supplies. The maximum values of the standards shall not be exceeded to assure protection of the public drinking water.

DRINKING WATER QUALITY AND HEALTH Drinking water should not contain disease-causing microorganisms or harmful chemicals. It should be clear, colourless and odourless. To ensure that drinking water meets the above criteria, Canada has negotiated a set of guidelines with the provinces.

In the water and sewage utilities sector, benchmarking is a method that was initially aimed to harmonize Russian regulations for drinking water quality assessment with those of other countries. Benchmarking is different from the simple harmonization method which stipulates that the best practices should be copied without any adjustments and allows to avoid copying practices and experience that would prove ineffective in the Russian setting. We believe that in order to work out the most suitable solutions, managers should take into account cause-and-effect relationship and the numerous (e.g. Regional) impact factors operating in the complex relational system of the water and sewage utilities sector. Benchmarking gives researchers and operators an opportunity to contemplate on the best foreign experience and assess in systematically. Thus, researchers and operators can gain insight into what is

5 1. GENERAL DESCRIPTION 1.1. Introduction. Topicality Currently, about half of the human population lives in cities. However, forecasts show that in 30 years two-thirds of the world’s population will be living in cities and agglomerations. Population growth in cities leads to increase of risks associated with public drinking water supply systems and water regarding safety and amount. Although during the last century there have been ambitious improvements regarding drinking water supply systems and technologies, there are still cases of public drinking water supply system contamination events that from time to time lead to illnesses or deaths of consumers. Scientific studies have shown that about 30 % of all gastrointestinal illnesses recorded in urban areas are related to consumption of inadequate quality drinking water from centralized systems. Application of drinking water quality evaluation methods that are regulated by legislation have not been able to detect those contamination events. Therefore, online drinking water quality monitoring systems with early warning function have been developed. In the case of a detected contamination event, the systems automatically trigger an alarm. Such systems are commercially available, but experimental studies show that the average contamination event detection accuracy is 82 %. It means that consumers are still exposed to potential threats. Moreover, evaluation of microbiological drinking water quality is not integrated into such a system, because the use of existing microbiological methods requires 18–24 hours. Consequently, it is necessary to improve early warning systems by implementing new and more accurate contamination detection algorithms and investigations of most appropriate drinking water quality parameters that would be required for online drinking water quality monitoring.

Keywords: Water quality, bacteriological, physicochemical, Boditi Town. 1. Introduction Certain natural processes and anthropogenic activities change the biological, chemical and physical qualities of water system (the source, water movement, distribution system) in such a way result a problem to health and well being of human population. According to UNESCO/WWAP (2004), above 75% of the health problems in Ethiopia are due to communicable diseases attributed to unsafe and inadequate water supply and unhygienic waste management, particularly excreta. The contamination of drinking water by pathogens causing diarrheal disease is the most important aspect in decreasing drinking water quality (Fawell and Mark, 2012). From the bacteriological quality point of view, water quality can be described as drinking water should be free from disease causing microorganisms. The problem arises as a consequence of contamination of water by fecal matter, particularly human and animal fecal matter, containing pathogenic organisms.

We are pleased to present to you the Annual Drinking Water Quality Report. Included are details about SGWASA’s water source(s), the water composition, and how the water compares to standards set by regulatory agencies. Our constant goal is to provide you with a safe and dependable supply of drinking water. We want you to understand the efforts we make to continually improve the water treatment process and protect our water resources. We are committed to ensuring the quality of your water and to providing you with this information because informed customers are our best allies. If you have any questions about this report or concerning your water, please contact Jonathan Yancey, Water Plant Superintendent at 919-575-3118 or contact SGWASA Customer Service at 919-575-3367 weekdays between the hours of 8:30 am – 4:30 pm. We want our valued customers to be informed about their water utility.

‘Health is Wealth’ is the famous adage befits all the time. The healthy citizens are the real assets of a country. Water is the elixir of life and if it is contaminated it would turn into dangerous liquid. The important reason for insisting on drinking- water quality is the protection of public health. The World Health Organization (WHO) states that for managing the risk from hazards we should not compromise the safety of drinking-water. The recommendations should be considered in the context of managing the risk from other sources of exposure to these hazards, such as waste, air, food and consumer products.

Several studies have reported health-related problems due to poor drinking water quality. For example, the concentra- tion of nitrate (NO 3 ) was found above the permissible limits causing blue baby syndrome in bottle fed babies [44]. The average daily intake of potassium (K) by adults was noted to be less than 0.1% through water [102]. Significant quantity of K is very important, the same as other elements for proper functioning of body. Diseases such as hypertension, kidney diseases, heart problem, muscle weakness, bladder weakness, and asthma may be caused due to K level decreasing in blood and increase in level may cause cysts, reduced renal function, rapid heartbeat, and improper metabolism of proteins [103]. The major source of sodium (Na) is the deposition of minerals into the water. Decrease in Na level in body causes low blood pressure, fatigue, mental apathy, and depression and increase in level may cause brain stroke, kidney prob- lem, nausea, headaches, hypertension, and stomach problem [104]. Cardiovascular disease may be caused by the basic cations deficiency such as calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg) [105]. The basic and important element for myoglobin and hemoglobin and for numerous other enzymes is iron (Fe). The higher level of Fe in body also causes many health problems such as weakening of cardiovascular tissue, central nervous system, kidney, and liver, blood problems, vomiting, and diarrhea [106].

Ontario Regulation 459/00 is made under the authority of OWRA and concerns larger waterworks and creates legally binding standards for drinking water quality. The new regulation makes other practices previously covered by directives and manuals part of a mandatory regime. The regulation sets out requirements for taking sample and testing drinking water, moreover only licensed operators at the waterworks may perform operational tests. In addition, only a laboratory accredited for this purpose can conduct health-related parameter tests and the results must be provided to the Ministry of Environment. There must be regular and frequent sampling of treated water for microbiological contaminants, chlorine residuals, turbidity, volatile organics and other health-related parameters. Certain levels of chlorine for disinfection are prescribed, but there is a permit for a variance process to review the amount of chlorine used. This regulation was originally titled “Drinking Water Protection”, but later was changed to “Drinking Water Protectio n-Larger Waterworks”.

Low-income and minority communities often face disproportionate burdens of exposure to contamination sources and environmental pollution, and associations with race and ethnicity persist even after accounting for differences in income [3]. While few studies have looked for links between drinking water and environmental justice indicators (e.g., poverty, race/ethnicity) [4], exist- ing studies have found associations between poorer drinking water quality and these indicators [4 – 8]. Com- munity water systems (CWSs) that serve communities with lower median incomes, lower rates of home owner- ship, and higher proportions of Hispanic or non-white residents have been associated with higher levels of nitrate and arsenic [5–7]. Among small rural water systems in Quebec, those serving areas with more ma- terial deprivation (based on income, education, and employment) were more likely to have lead levels of health concern and less likely to have advanced water treatment [4]. Health-based violations of the SDWA were more common in poorer communities with higher proportions of Hispanic or African-American residents; the effects of race and ethnicity were not apparent in more affluent communities [8]. Environmental justice associations with drinking water have not been consist- ently observed, and may depend on the spatial scope and individual contaminants studied. For instance, Cory and Rahman [9] concluded there was limited evidence for environmental justice disparities in exposures to ar- senic in water systems in Arizona. The likelihood of studies finding environmental justice associations with the siting of hazardous waste facilities strongly depends on the unit of analysis (e.g., county, census block) and overall scope (e.g., state, national); studies with a small unit of analysis and large scope were most likely to find significant associations [10]. To date, studies of environ- mental justice and drinking water contaminants have considered individual states (e.g., Arizona, Oregon) or

SOURCE WATER ASSESSMENT The NYSDOH, with assistance from the local health department, has completed a source water assessment for this system based on available information. Possible and actual threats to this drinking water source were evaluated. The source water assessment includes a susceptibility rating based on the risk posed by each potential source of contamination and how rapidly contaminants can move through the subsurface to the wells. The susceptibility of a water supply well to contamination is dependent upon both the presence of potential sources of contamination within the well’s contributing area and the likelihood that the contaminant can travel through the environment to reach the well. The susceptibility rating is an estimate of the potential for contamination of the source water, it does not mean that the water delivered to consumers is, or will become contaminated. See the section entitled “Water Quality and Treatment” for a list of the contaminants that have been detected.

Other normative and regulatory functions belong to such ministries as those responsible for public works, housing, natural resources, or the environment, which are concerned with the design of water-supply and waste-disposal systems, equipment standards, plumbing codes and rules, water allocation, protection and conservation, and waste collection, treatment, and disposal. The economic plan- ning unit (for resources allocation), the ministries and agencies in charge of internal affairs and local government (for community issues), and the ministry of finance (in relation to water tariffs) should be consulted on issues within their respective areas of competence. Private autonomous water suppliers should also be involved in drawing up standards if this is justified by their individual or collective size and importance; the national regulations, adjusted as necessary, should always be applicable to such water suppliers. Successful intersectoral coordination requires the involvement of agencies responsible for community development and hygiene education in all activities and at all levels; these agencies are usually more easily decentralized than the water authorities. Public health agencies are often closer to the community than those responsible for its water supply. At local level, they also interact with other sectors, e.g. education, and their combined action is essential to ensure active community involvement.

Water Sources BWA obtains its drinking water from ground and surface water sources. It comes from Lake Benbrook, the Paluxy and Trinity Aquifers and from the Clear Fork Trinity River. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) completed an assessment of our source water and results indicate that some of our sources are susceptible to certain contaminants. The sampling requirements for our water system are based on this susceptibility and previous sample data. Any detection of these contaminants will be found in this report. If we receive or purchase water from another system, their susceptibility is not included in the assessment. For more information about your sources of water, please refer to the Source Water Assessment Viewer available at the following URL: http://www.tceq.texas.gov/gis/swaview. Further details about sources and source-water assessments are available in Drinking Water Watch at the following URL: http://dww2.tceq.texas.gov/DWW/.

What causes water to sometimes appear discolored or rusty? In some cases, rusty or dirty water may come from the distribution system as a result of a water main break or fire hydrant use. It may take several hours for stirred up sediments to settle. In the event of a main break or disturbance, it is best to wait until the problem is fixed before running your water. Then periodically run a cold water faucet for 3-5 minutes at the lowest point in your house (usually the basement) until the water runs clear. If it is still rusty or dirty, wait 1-2 hours and then try again. Do not run your hot water, as this will draw the discolored water into your hot water tank and may discolor clothing if you are using your washer. Another cause of discolored water could be from rusting in galvanized pipes in home plumbing systems. Also, remember that every year, during the months of September thru November, Redford Township conducts its hydrant flushing program. This may cause rusty or dirty water for those in the areas being flushed. Why do I have a sewer odor in my basement? Water that normally remains in your plumbing fixture traps or basement floor drains may have evaporated and sewer gases are enter- ing your home. To remedy this situation, pour half a bucket of water down the floor and sink drains. Also remember to fill any shower drains in seldom used bathrooms.

However, all four Detroit water treatment plants that use source water from Detroit River have historically provided satisfactory treatment of this source water to meet drinking water s[r]

Temperature °C <15 - 11.3 11.9 11.7 12.5 All listed parameter are, with the exeption of hardness, below the operational guidelines and aesthetic objectives. Water hardness is defined by the amount of dissolved calcium and magnesium in water. Hard water (121 – 180 mg CaCO 3 /L) is high in dissolved minerals and has a tendency to form scale deposits. This does not mean that it poses a health risk. It only means that more soap or detergent is needed to clean things. Hard water has benefits as well: humans need minerals to stay healthy and drinking water could contribute to calcium and magnesium in the diet. In Ontario the hardness from surface sources ranges from 3.7 to 296 mg/L.

DisCussion Gradually, we applied quick screening methods for the collection of water samples and scrap- ings from the wetted surfaces of water tanks (in operation and during unavailability times due to cleaning). The advantage of those methods resides not only in the manner of collection but also in the fact that a sample is imprinted directly on the surface of the cultivation medium on which the approximate number of microorganisms is regularly read after a certain cultivation period. The results of the analyses carried out with the use of paddle testers or tests of biological activity have informa- tive nature and are fully sufficient for subsequent manipulations in water tank premises. The results of the contamination degree found in the course of the project solution will serve as basic data for a scale that should evaluate the degree of water tanks pollution as well as for resulting corrective measures or optimisation of water tank cleaning.

Q. Is there lead in my water? A. Dallas’ water purification plants send lead-free water to customers. More than 20 years ago, Dallas began eliminating lead service lines and pipes that could leach lead into the water. There are no lead pipes in Dallas’ system. Also, Dallas’ water treatment process employs a technique designed to prevent leaching of lead into water from solder joints and plumbing fixtures. Your home plumbing may have lead pipes or solder. If you think you have a lead problem, let the water run for about a minute if the tap has not been used for three or more hours (save this water and use it to water plants or for some other household activity). Letting the water run may not get all of the lead out of the water, but it will improve the sit- uation. Also, insist on lead-free materials when having plumbing work performed in the home. If you think you have a problem, you may call DWU at 214/670-0900 for a free water test.

Figure 4: Fungi values of the studied sites. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS Conclusion This study was aimed to evaluate the quality of drinking water supplied from MmR to Sirte area. Physical, chemical and biological parameters were investigated and compared with the WHO and Libyan standards. The physical parameters include temperature, colure, taste, odour and EC. The important chemical parameters are pH, TDS, K, Cl, Na, SO 4 , NO 3 , Ca-H, TH, T-ALK and heavy metals. Biological parameters such as T.C, T.C.F and fungi were also analyzed. Analysis has been done on water samples collected from eighteen representative sites in the study area for a period of five months.