 |
||
|
Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) |  |
 |
||
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
|
|
Promoting Safe Drinking Water: Communities Share Success StoriesDayton, Ohio Elina Adini, 30, lives in southern Africa. "Our water and sanitation situation is not good. We have one open well with a bucket but it's in a bad state.
The international community is working to help people like Elina by committing to halve, by 2015, the proportion of people without access to safe drinking water. Luckily, in the United States, we have one of the best supplies of freshwater in the world. However, threats to our water quality and quantity do exist. How much do you know about your water? After all, our health--not to mention our nation's economy--depends upon it. Water runs our factories, powers our electricity, grows our crops, waters our livestock, and is the livelihood of the fishing industry. Clean and safe water allows us to swim, fish, and boat recreationally. Ultimately, it is our "drinking water": the water that runs from the taps in our homes, allowing us to drink, cook, bathe, clean, and water our lawns.But are we taking this precious resource for granted? What if, when we turned on the tap, our water was not safe? Or what if we simply did not know whether it was or not? The following stories tell how some communities have dealt with these very questions.
Dayton, OhioDayton, Ohio and much of the surrounding metropolitan area are situated above an aquifer that provides drinking water to 450,000 residents. The wellfields used for Dayton's public water supply are located within the urban core of the area, which is home to hundreds of businesses and 150 million pounds of hazardous materials. Following a fire at a paint warehouse, residents realized that their water was at risk. According to Lee Drummond, the city's Environmental Compliance Coordinator, "The blessing out of the fire was that it called attention to the sensitivity of our groundwater... the public learned what an aquifer is and its importance to the health of the entire region."
But, residents and city officials alike wondered if they could simultaneously protect their drinking water and Dayton's economic growth. With the help of two innovative business incentive programs, funded by local water bills, Dayton has been able to do just that. In the first program, the city provides zero-interest loans for up to 15 years to businesses to finance projects that will reduce risks to the groundwater. The second program allows the city to provide a five-year forgivable loan to businesses who agree to lower the amount of hazardous materials stored on their property. As of August 2004, hazardous materials have been reduced by over 17 million pounds. "Before the program was enacted," Drummond recalled, "some said it would cause the loss of thousands of jobs and the business area would become a 'graveyard.' The high occupancy rate and amount of business investment indicate that this has not occurred." According to Drummond, the business sites located within Dayton's Well Field Protection Area have consistently maintained an occupancy rate of more than 90 percent. And since the ordinance was enacted in 1988, 1,060 building plans have been approved, with a construction value exceeding $55 million.Ferry County, Washington
Residents of Ferry County, Washington were worried about their water. The rural county's economy relies heavily upon agriculture and mining, both of which have been associated with water contamination. 85% of the community receives their water from private wells, but no data existed on the area's water quality. Was their water contaminated with arsenic as a result of mining operations? What about nitrates and coliform bacteria associated with agriculture? The only way to find out was to collect samples, and send them to a lab for analysis. Through a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Ferry County established the W.E.T. (Water Education & Training) Program, which coordinates the county's water education and protection efforts. The program provides natural resource education in area schools, and allows local schoolchildren to collect the water samples. According to project coordinator Carolyn Blake, the program allows the kids to become "invested" in their community, and at the same time, gets them excited about science. As Blake puts it, "Teachers love us." Some of the children are even planning careers in resource management. Explains Blake, "The kids are often amazed that people get to wade around in streams for a living!" Thanks to the efforts of the W.E.T. Project, local residents now have a clear picture of their water quality, along with a better understanding of how to protect their valuable resource. As a whole, the community has acceptably low levels of arsenic, nitrates, and coliform. As an additional benefit, several households were alerted to elevated levels of lead in their drinking water, probably due to plumbing fixtures. As a direct result of community-wide water protection efforts, coliform levels have been cut almost in half. Meanwhile, a new generation of community leaders is waiting in the wings: ask Ferry County children who is going to protect their water some day, and they eagerly respond, "We are!" Abilene, KansasFrom 1995 to 1998, nitrate levels in Abilene's drinking water were so high, the city provided bottled water vouchers to pregnant women and families with small children. Excessive levels of nitrate lowers oxygen levels in the blood, posing an immediate threat to infants. Excessive levels can lead to "blue baby syndrome," which, left untreated, can be fatal. The City of Abilene, along with multiple partners, established the Water Improvement Program to combat the problem, funded by grants from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. According to project administrator David Gurss, "The program decided early on to take a comprehensive approach that would address all potential nitrate sources." And there were many, including septic systems, dog kennels, farming and livestock operations, and fertilizers from crops and lawns.
Although nitrate levels in ground water have remained about the same - a noticeable decrease isn't expected for several years - Gurss says that "by all accounts, the project has been a success," and it has received statewide recognition for its efforts. They have established educational programs, and continue to carefully monitor the quality of the area's water. They even constructed a new water treatment plant that removes nitrates from the water - allowing pregnant women and residents with small children to drink water from their own tap. Your WaterThe U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regulates your drinking water by setting maximum levels for more than 90 contaminants. Drinking water systems are responsible for delivering water that meets these standards, and also for notifying you in the event that there is a problem with your water. Contact your local water utility for a copy of its Consumer Confidence Report for detailed information on the quality of your water. You may also contact the EPA's Safe Drinking Water Hotline at (800) 426-4791, or visit www.epa.gov/safewater for more information. If you rely on a private well, contact EPA for a copy of Drinking Water from Household Wells. |
|
|
|
|
||
|
|