CO2 and Drinking Water

Saturday, October 24, 2009 is International Day of Climate Action

Visit www.350.org for more information

Meanwhile, here are some ideas about reducing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

Bottled Water & Energy Consumption

The Pacific Institute says that the entire energy costs of a bottle of water’s lifecycle are equivalent to filling up a quarter of each bottle with oil. Multiply that by the 35 billion bottles of water consumed in America in 2006. Or consider that making bottles to meet America’s demand for

Find alternatives to plastic water bottles

bottled water – 17 million barrels of oil were used in 2007. That’s enough fuel for one-million US cars a year. Then there is the 2.5 million tons of carbon dioxide associated with the production, shipping and waste of bottled water.

In other words, “…bottled water is up to 2000 times more energy intensive than tap water.”

 

Salt and Potassium Water Conditioning

It’s official. While the established soft water industry has fought tooth and nail to oppose AB1366, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger recently announced his signing  legislation aimed at reducing California’s greenhouse gas emissions, which included AB1366.

AB 1366 addresses excess salinity from residential water softeners.  The bills addresses surface and groundwater supplies that are susceptible to salt contamination from conventional water softening systems.  The bill includes the Central Coast hydrologic region.

The Santa Cruz Sentinel reports, “Most softeners waste water and cause recycling and sewage treatment issues. The most environmentally damaging softeners are the type that use salt and regenerate on a preset timer schedule. The amount of water used for regeneration varies, but is roughly 75 gallons. Many systems are set to regenerate too frequently.”

The water softeners that regenerate on a preset schedule were banned in the city of Scotts Valley in the early 1990s, mainly to prevent overloading the wastewater recycling system with sodium.

Finding an Alternative

There are many drinking water systems for your home that will remove the contaminates, chlorine, and other toxins, like pesticides, VOCs, lead, mercury,  and pharmaceuticals from your drinking water.

Besides lessening your carbon footprint, switching to tap water from home will also save  you money.

A reusable steel hydration bottle is BPA free will divert plastic bottles from landfills and our waterways.

 Salt Free Water Conditioning

You can reduce your conventional soft water conditioner’s environmental impact .  Some ideas include, as reported by the Santa Cruz Sentinel: 1) Use less salt. The literature suggests most softeners use twice as much salt than is really needed.  2) Reduce the frequency of the regeneration cycle in timer clock systems; consider a five-day cycle. 3) Retrofit time clock systems with a demand-initiated kit.

 You can also explore alternative household water conditioning systems. 

 There are  inexpensive under-kitchen counter systems found at you local appliance dealers, and the market also offers a wide-variety of salt-free systems that treat your entire house.

 Be mindful of whether the system requires backwashing, or requires regular filter exchange and/or maintenance.

 We agree that water is a precious resource. 

 

“…when man has forgotten his origins and is blind even to his most essential needs for survival, water along with other resources has become the victim of his indifference.” Rachel Carson

“Plain” Water Drinkers Are Healthier

Water drinkers may have better diets

Last Updated: 2009-10-13 13:20:59 -0400 (Reuters Health)

By Amy Norton

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – People who get much of their daily liquids from plain water rather than other beverages may have healthier diets overall, a study suggests.

Using data from a national health survey of more than 12,000 Americans, researchers found that people who drank more “plain water” tended to eat more fiber, less sugar and fewer calorie-dense foods.

The reverse was true of people who got much of their fluids from other beverages, according to a report of the study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

The findings do not prove that drinking water makes for healthier eaters, said lead researcher Dr. Ashima K. Kant, a professor at Queens College of the City University of New York.

But, she told Reuters Health, they do suggest a connection — and a reason to encourage people to choose water over beverages.

The findings are based on 12,283 Americans age 20 and older who took part in a government health and nutrition survey between 1999 and 2006. On average, respondents got one-third of their daily fluids from water, 48 percent from other beverages and the rest from food.

In general, the more water people drank, the more fiber and the less sugar they consumed. They also had a lower intake of calorie-dense foods — a general marker of a healthier diet. Calorie density refers to the amount of calories in a food in relation to its weight; fruits and vegetables, for instance, tend to have a low calorie density.

From a “purely physiological” standpoint, Kant noted, people can get their fluid needs from any source. Drinking plain water, therefore, is not necessary, but it may be preferable, she said.

As for how much water a person should drink, there is no straightforward answer — despite the popular belief that people need 8 glasses of water per day.

As a general rule of thumb, Kant said, sedentary healthy adults can let their thirst be their guide on when to drink.

SOURCE: American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2009.

Florida and California Drinking Water Sources Contaminated

West Palm Beach adds to Wetland/Drinking Water Pollution 10/5/09

WEST PALM BEACH, FL — This city has been assessed $144,798 in fines for pumping millions of gallons of poorly treated wastewater onto wetlands adjacent to wells used to supplement the city’s drinking water supply, the Palm Beach Post reported September 30. In July, the US Environmental Protection Agency, which previously had cited the city with 117 pollution violations, won a state administrative court order assessing the fines and requiring the city to correct the plant’s deficiencies. The order requires the city to pay $500 for each of the 117 pollution violations, $2,600 for each of the 25 times it failed to submit water quality test results from late 2006 through 2008 for the water it pumps onto the wetlands, and other penalties, the report said. Regulators and city officials said there is no immediate danger to city residents, noting that the city is working with environmental authorities to correct the problems. According to the report, government data shows that the most recent water quality tests, taken in July, exceeded regulatory limits. Levels of cyanide were more than 2-1/2 times the allowable levels, and the plant continues to omit test results for a variety of toxic chemicals — including mercury and PCBs — because of problems associated with measurements of the substances at the city’s lab. According to the Palm Beach Post, “The city never addressed the fine, the judge’s order or the violations publicly until questioned by a reporter. Asked why, city spokesman Chase Scott said: ‘The mayor just recently became aware of the situation via the consent order.’”  City Commissioner Kimberly Mitchell, who said she did not recall being made aware of the issue, said “Mistakes happen. Bad things happen. But you own up to it. And then you get it fixed. To read the full report, click here.

California Waters Suffer Mercury Contamination

10/5/2009 4:10:58 PM

NEW IDRIA, CA — Mercury is the “most harmful invisible pollutant” in California’s watershed, and according to a September 17 investigative report from The Associated Press (AP), abandoned mercury mines throughout California are a big contributor to the problem. Thousands of square miles of land and water, including San Francisco Bay and the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, are polluted with mercury, AP reported, noting that the cleanup of abandoned mines doesn’t seem to be a federal priority. “Mercury tops the list as the most harmful invisible pollutant in the (state’s) watershed,” Sejal Choksi of San Francisco Baykeeper, an environmental watchdog group for the bay, is quoted saying. “It has such widespread impacts, and the regulatory agencies are just throwing up their hands.” AP wrote that records and interviews show that federal regulators have conducted about 10 cleanups at major mercury mines in the state with mixed results, while dozens of sites are still actively polluting the air, soil and water. “The AP’s review also found that the government is often loathe to assume cleanup costs and risk litigation from a failed project,” the report said.  The report noted that the “pollution disproportionately hurts the poor and immigrants” who routinely include local fish as part of their diet, according to a study conducted by University of California, Davis ecologist Fraser Shilling. Shilling said his research found that 100,000 people, which he calls a conservative estimate, regularly eat tainted fish at levels deemed unsafe by the US Environmental Protection Agency.  The total number of abandoned mercury mines in California is at least 550 and could be as high as 2,000, the report said.   To read the report, click here. Abandoned Mine Map  http://www.consrv.ca.gov/omr/abandoned_mine_lands/Documents/CaliforniaAMLMap_March%202009.pdf

 

Atlanta Water Source High in e. Coli

Atlanta water source ‘chock-full of E. coli’

9/29/2009 4:36:45 PM

ATLANTA — The E. coli bacteria level in the Chattahoochee River, which is the drinking water source for more than 3.5 million people, including 70 percent of the people in metro Atlanta, recently tested 42 times greater than the highest safe level, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution said in a September 27 article. Federal officials have been routinely sampling the river following record flooding in the region. Sally Bethea of the Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper organization reported the extremely high level of E. coli bacteria in the water detected during the sampling. She said, “There is no way you want to get in or even touch water [this dirty]. I’ve never seen the water so filthy. It was just filthy, and it didn’t smell very good in some places.” Sampling of source water and drinking water continues. In a September 28 report on 11Alive.com, reporters said, “We have now received the results from the state’s early samples that show the fecal count at the Atlanta drinking water intake [on the Chattahoochee River] was 25 percent above acceptable limits. … However, officials tell us the drinking water is still safe except in areas that have a boil advisory in effect.” The city’s R.M. Clayton sewage treatment plant, which was swamped by the flood, is partially able to treat waste entering the facility. However, the plant has been inundated with trash brought in by the high water. City officials have not yet announced when the plant will resume full operation, the Journal-Constitution reported. Janet Ward, with the city’s Watershed Management Department, called on the public to “stop dumping trash in the streets” that would enter the plant from storm drains. Tim Cash with the Georgia Environmental Protection Division said in the Journal-Constitution article that samples of the river’s water following the flooding “showed the water remains capable of supporting life despite the flood of sewage” because so much water was flushing through the system. He said the main risk to the public from the river is the potential for pathogens, a risk that becomes more pronounced as the floodwaters recede and flows return to normal. To read the Journal-Constitution article, click here.

Researching Whole House Water Filtration Systems

While assembling data for Riptide Alchemy, LLC’s  www.riptidealchemy.com sales material, I stumbled upon these articles that answered my questions about water filtration for your home.    One of the most interesting articles was about reverse osmosis and the minerals we need in our bodies.  A plethora of information can be found on the internet.  Here are some links that offer rational and researched information that is current.   Check this site for updates, which will be noted in red at the top of this page.  Enjoy.

http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Best-Water-Filter-Will-Effectively-Remove-All-Contaminants-While-Leaving-Healthful-Minerals&id=836705

http://ezinearticles.com/?Reverse-Osmosis-Systems-Are-Not-The-Best-Choice-For-Home-Water-Filtration-or-Purification&id=855098

http://ezinearticles.com/?Inline-Water-Filters-Can-Rid-Your-Homes-Water-Of-Contaminants-That-Can-Lead-To-Health-Problems&id=817800

http://ezinearticles.com/?How-Do-Water-Filters-Work-To-Remove-Impurities-From-Drinking-Water-In-Your-Home?&id=817793

http://www.paramuspost.com/article.php/20071017111704935    Reverse Osmosis and Osteoporosis

http://www.ask.com/bar?q=osteoporosis+and+reverse+osmosis+&page=1&qsrc=2417&ab=1&title=Toxicology:%20drinking%20water%20purity,%20reverse%20osmosis%20systems,%20coronary&u=http%3A%2F%2Fen.allexperts.com%2Fq%2FToxicology-3458%2Fdrinking-water-purity.htm

Contaminated Drinking Water Consumed by 1 in 10 Americans

Editor’s Note:  Many of the contaminates found in drinking water can be reduced by using the Mermaid Pure Whole House Water Filtration System at www.riptidealchemy.com      Contaminated water drunk by 1 in 10 Americans: NY Times

9/14/2009 2:17:24 PM

NEW YORK — An estimated 1 in 10 Americans have been exposed to drinking water that contains dangerous chemicals or fails to meet a federal health benchmark in other ways, an investigation by The New York Times has found. A report of the investigation was published in the September 13 edition of the newspaper. “Those exposures include carcinogens in the tap water of major American cities and unsafe chemicals in drinking-water wells. Wells, which are not typically regulated by the Safe Drinking Water Act, are more likely to contain contaminants than municipal water systems,” the report said. It notes that many who consume dangerous chemicals through their drinking water do not realize it because “most of today’s water pollution has no scent or taste.”  The Times said its research included the review of “hundreds of thousands of water pollution records” from all 50 states and the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) obtained through Freedom of Information Act requests, as well as from more than 250 interviews with state and federal regulators, water-systems managers, environmental advocates and scientists. The Times compiled a national database of water pollution violations “that is more comprehensive than those maintained by states or the EPA,” the report said.  The Times says its research shows that 40 percent of the nation’s community water systems violated the Safe Drinking Water Act at least once last year. “Those violations ranged from failing to maintain proper paperwork to allowing carcinogens into tap water. More than 23 million people received drinking water from municipal systems that violated a health-based standard,” the report said.  The Times reported that the federal Clean Water Act, a water pollution-control law passed in 1972, has been violated more than 506,000 times since 2004, by more than 23,000 companies and other facilities, according to reports submitted by polluters themselves. “Companies sometimes test what they are dumping only once a quarter, so the actual number of days when they broke the law is often far higher. And some companies illegally avoid reporting their emissions, say officials, so infractions go unrecorded,” according to the report.  The Times said its research reveals that fewer than 3 percent of Clean Water Act violations resulted in fines or other significant punishments by state officials, and that the EPA often declined to prosecute polluters or force states to strengthen their enforcement.  The report looks at shortcomings of the EPA, and quotes from an interview with EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson, appointed earlier this year by President Obama. Jackson said that despite many successes since the Clean Water Act was passed, the nation’s water today does not meet public health goals and enforcement of water pollution laws is “unacceptably low.” Jackson said she intends “to work on these water issues pretty broadly across the country.”  The online version of the report also includes a video documentary in which one West Virginia mother explains how water pollution, which she believes is caused by nearby coal companies, has impacted her family and community.  A related article, “How safe is your water?,” offers information for consumers to use to consider the safety of their water, including when and what water treatment devices might be useful.  The report is part of The New York Times series, “Toxic Waters,” which is about the worsening pollution of America’s waters and regulators’ response.  For an interactive version of the Times national database of water pollution violations, which can show violations by community, click here.

Water Woes: Atrazine in Illinois, VOCs in LA Water

Drink safe and healthy water from any tap in your home. Visit www.RiptideAlchemy.com for information about our Mermaid Pure Whole House Water Filtration System.

 

 Herbicide in Illinois Water

PEORIA, IL — An attorney representing water districts throughout Illinois has filed a class action lawsuit in the Third Judicial Circuit of Illinois against the manufacturers of the herbicide atrazine, the Journal Star reported August 22.

 According to the Web site for plaintiffs’ attorney Stephen Tillery, the lawsuit contends atrazine in drinking water is unsafe at any level, even at levels well below the US Environmental Protection Agency requirement.

 The suit has been filed on behalf of the rural Holiday Shores Sanitary District near Edwardsville and other water districts throughout the Illinois. It names atrazine manufacturer Syngenta Crop Protection Inc., with headquarters in Switzerland, and Growmark Inc., with principal offices in Bloomington, as defendants. The lawsuit asks Syngenta to compensate water districts for the cost they incur in removing atrazine, a cost that could run over $1 billion nationwide on an annual basis, the Star Journal reported.

 Atrazine is banned in a number of European countries, including Switzerland, because of the potential for groundwater contamination, but it is widely used in the United States on corn, according to the Star Journal.

 VOC’s in Los Angeles Ground Water

LOS ANGELES — The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has reached a settlement for cleanup of the San Gabriel Valley Superfund site in which aerospace giant Northrop Grumman Space & Mission Systems Corp. will pay $21 million for a groundwater treatment system, the EPA announced in an August 27 news release.

Northrop Grumman agreed on behalf of several entities to build the treatment system, which will be designed to pump out groundwater contaminated with volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from more than 60 source properties. The VOCs were used for degreasing, metal cleaning and other purposes, and the contamination dates back to World War II through the 1980s.

“Northrop Grumman also will install water conveyance pipelines and construct a treatment plant to remove VOC contaminants from the groundwater. The treated water will be used for drinking water supply, water reclamation projects, or discharged to surface water,” EPA said.

According to the EPA, 45 water suppliers use the San Gabriel Basin groundwater aquifers to provide 90 percent of the drinking water to more than 1 million people.

Keith Takata, director of the Superfund program of the EPA’s Pacific Southwest Office, is quoted saying the cleanup “is an important step toward restoring this valuable source of drinking water.”

International Coastal Clean Up Day

Sign up today at  http://www.signuptocleanup.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=Projects.Main&CFID=5418733&CFTOKEN=28407602

Cars and Couches Found in Merrimack River

River Trash

For more info:  http://www.cleanriverproject.com/

 

Everything from car parts to a dishwasher, all pulled from this waterway which serves as a drinking water source for the community.

“It can’t be all that clean if this is what’s in there,” Carol Johnson said.

Members of the Clean River Project hauled the debris up from the river bottom on Saturday.

Rocky Morrison runs the organization and said it was part of a scavenger hunt.

“The more trash people pulled up they got points and then we tallied up the points,” Morrison said.

“We pulled up part of a car, a couch — I couldn’t believe my sister got a couch,” Mikayla Ciopuni said. “I thought it was horrible that people just threw away this stuff.”

“People got to realize this is their drinking water and all of this stuff is letting off chemicals,” Morrison said.

The Clean River Project pulled the junk out of the river with the support of Congresswoman Niki Tsongas and Lowell’s Mayor Bud Caulfield.

“This is a disgrace, that people would throw this stuff into the Merrimack River,” Mayor Caulfield said.

The Merrimack River provides drinking water to Lowell, Lawrence, and Methuen. Haverhill is considering using it as well.

City Councilor James Donahue is against that possibility.

“Considering our spot on the river, we are

the last major city before the ocean so we are more prone to chemicals and pcps, other things that float downstream,” Councilor Donahue said. 

The pile on the river’s bank drew lots of stares on Sunday. Area residents were disgusted by what was found in the water they use for drinking and swimming.

“I think this is probably just the tip of the iceberg of what’s down there, because people don’t want to bother to dispose of their garbage,” Johnson said.

Clean River Project members cleared out the debris Sunday afternoon. They planned on recycling as much as possible.

Local officials hope to receive state and federal money to remove more trash from the water.

Pesticides and Nitrates Contaminate Drinking Water in Florida

 

RESTON, VA — The combined effects of pesticide compounds and elevated nitrate levels in lakes in central Florida’s Lake Wales Ridge region may threaten drinking water sources and aquatic life, US Geological Survey scientists have reported in a first-of-its kind study.

The study, Water Quality and Evaluation of Pesticides in Lakes in the Ridge Citrus Region of Central Florida, is the first to evaluate the occurrence of pesticides in lakes on the Ridge, a major citrus-producing area where pesticides are applied multiple times per year. The report also represents one of the first monitoring efforts nationally to focus on regional-scale assessment of current-use pesticides in small- to moderate-sized lakes (5 acres to 393 acres). Anne F. Choquette and Sharon E. Kroening authored the study in cooperation with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and the Southwest Florida Water Management District.

The authors said underground drinking water sources in the region are vulnerable to contamination due to a wet climate, soils lacking in materials to filter or break down substances, and porous drinking water aquifers.

The importance of continued early detection, monitoring, and understanding of the chemicals and their impacts was stressed in the study. According to the authors, local-scale groundwater flow-path studies “could provide information on the processes and hydrogeologic factors controlling the transport and fate of pesticides in the lakes and in adjacent aquifers, and help to determine the influence of the lakes on regional water quality in this dynamic, closely linked groundwater/surface water system.”

To this end, the USGS is helping state agencies develop a sampling network to detect contaminants as they enter the aquifers.

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