Big Berkey Water Filters

Last week was Drinking Water Week, and to highlight this, the American Water Works Association (AWWA) put together a number of resources to help consumers learn more about their water supply and how to maintain the high-quality of water once it enters their household plumbing system. Included was the top ten tips for maintaining water quality in the home.

In the US, the Environmental Protection Agency is tasked with ensuring that drinking water meets strict health standards in accordance with the Safe Drinking Water Act. To this end, community water suppliers are required to sample drinking water resources on their premises at multiple stages throughout the day to test drinking water for approximately 100 different contaminants. If any transgressions occur, these must be reported so that safety protocols can be implemented. Water quality reports are freely available for customers to view.

“In the US, our water providers must make water quality reports available to their customers every single year,” said AWWA Executive Director David LaFrance. “If you have questions about your water, I strongly encourage you to go straight to the source to find the answers.”

Although the majority of treated water supplied to American households meets strict water quality safety standards, very often contaminants enter the water as it is piped from the water treatment plant to your home. Contaminants can also enter drinking water and negatively impact the quality of the water after it enters your home due to poor maintenance of household plumbing systems.

“Our water providers work very hard to be sure that the water leaving the treatment plant meets all federal and state standards,” said AWWA Executive Director David LaFrance. “As consumers, it’s up to us to help protect that water quality by maintaining our homes’ pipes and faucets.”

Ten Tips for Maintaining Water Quality in Your Home

To help homeowners maintain optimal drinking water quality in their homes, AWWA has provided these ten tips for protecting the water quality in their household plumbing systems:

1.  Make sure that faucets and aerators are cleaned regularly.
2.  Ensure that sinks and drains are cleaned and disinfected regularly.
3.  Ensure that drains are kept unclogged and remain free from debris.
4.  Always use water from the cold tap for drinking water and for food preparation.
5.  Replace old pipes and plumbing fixtures with certified lead-free pipes and fixtures.
6.  Ensure that cold water pipes are flushed out after home plumbing maintenance work has been conducted, or if water has been standing in the pipes unused for a number of days.
7.  Your hot water cylinder should be drained and flushed annually.
8.  Ensure that manufacturer's instructions and maintenance guidelines are carefully followed when installing and/or using water heaters, home water filters, water softeners, or any other water treatment device that is installed on your home plumbing system.
9.  Don't connect hoses or other devices that are used for non-drinking purposes to household drinking water faucets.
10.  Ensure that dangerous chemicals and unsanitary materials don't come into contact with drinking water faucets.

Home owners whose drinking water is supplied by private wells should take special precautionary measures to ensure the quality of their drinking water. Home owners should be aware of potential contamination threats in their area, and should have their water tested regularly to ensure it is safe to drink. Should your water test positive for any number of drinking water contaminants, it may be prudent to invest in a top of the range home water filter, such as a Big Berkey water filter system fitted with the Black Berkey filter elements, which is capable of removing a host of contaminants that may be present in drinking water.

Further information for maintaining household water quality is available at DrinkTap.org.

Contamination of drinking water by toxic pollutants, is a major concern. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has an exceedingly long list of both primary and secondary drinking water contaminants that it regulates. However, a new form of pollution, collective referred to as 'emerging pollutants', which consist of contaminants that stem from pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs), are rapidly becoming more of a concern.

Most people take drugs or medication at some point in their life, and all of us use personal care products to a greater or lesser degree every day. Drugs and medication fight off bacteria and viruses that cause us to become ill, or reduce inflammation and relieve pain. But these drugs don't simply disappear once they are swallowed. Traces of drugs that are not metabolized by the body are excreted, where they enter the sewer and freshwater systems. However, most sewage treatment facilities are not adequately equipped to be able to remove these notions and potions from the treated water before it leaves the treatment plant. Consequently, these drugs flow from the wastewater treatment plants into surrounding freshwater systems where they not only wreak havoc with wildlife, but can be potentially harmful to humans who drink the water.

How Widespread is the Problem?

According to the EPA, Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products (PPCPs) can be defined as all personal hygiene, health, and beauty products, as well as veterinary products used on pets and livestock for health or growth enhancement. These products include prescription drugs, over-the-counter medicines, growth hormones (steroids), sex hormones (contraceptives), antibiotics, anti-inflammatories, fragrances, toiletries, and cosmetics. As this list covers a broad scope of over the counter drugs, it stands to reason that drugs can enter our freshwater systems from a wide range of sources that include:

1. Bathing, showering, and washing where soaps, shampoo, and fragrant oils, creams and lotions are washed down the drain.
2. Drugs may be released into the sewer when they are excreted or if expired medication is flushed down the toilet.
3. Sunscreen and body lotion can wash off into the water when a person swims in rivers or lakes.
4. Hormones used during agriculture or drugs used on domestic animals or livestock can be released with the animals waste to contaminate soil and groundwater systems through leaching and freshwater rivers and lakes through runoff.
5. Drugs disposed in hospital waste or in the waste of pharmaceutical manufacturing companies can find its way into sewer or freshwater systems.

According to the EPA, ''PPCPs are found in any water body influenced by raw or treated sewage, including rivers, streams, ground water, coastal marine environments, and many drinking water sources.'' They further state that ''PPCPs have been identified in most places sampled.''

Effects of Pharmaceuticals on Wildlife

Drugs and pharmaceuticals, such as contraceptives, can drastically affect fish and other aquatic wildlife. Research studies have revealed that hormones used in contraceptive pills can affect egg and sperm production in fish, and can even cause male fish to become feminized to a point where they start producing eggs instead of sperm. If this scenario persists for any length of time it will lead to a rapid decline in affected fish populations.  Sex abnormalities have also been noted in frogs. This begs the question: can this have a similar affect on humans who drink water contaminated with these hormones and drugs?

Drugs, hormones, and other pharmaceuticals have been specifically designed to affect living organisms. It therefore stands to reason that these products will have an effect on all living organisms when they are involuntarily released into natural systems. This is particularly worrisome because up until recently nobody has thought to monitor the extent or effect of these drugs in our waterways.

Unfortunately our wildlife is not in a position to filter water to remove toxins which they are continually exposed to. Ultimately, this problem urgently needs further research and measures put into place to reduce the risks to both our wildlife and our own health.

The Black Berkey Filters

You may have noticed that there are some very popular water filter companies that are starting to advertise that their filters remove pharmaceuticals from the drinking water. These filters are made with much lower quality filter ingredients, so a logical train of thought would be that if their filters remove them, and if the filtration media used is similar, then the black berkeys would be effective also. However, many of these larger companies are not providing test results to back up these claims, in addition to the fact that slight variations in filter media types can produce varying filtration results. Thus, at this point we reserve our positive endorsement for both these companies making the claims without testing results and our own black berkeys (until we have tests in hand), and rather provide this information so that the consumer can make the most informed decision possible. The reality is that this is a relatively new public concern and the water filtration industry as a whole needs to catch up quickly.

Climate change has the potential to impact humans in a variety of ways, but the impact on water availability – both for irrigation and drinking water – is without doubt one of the biggest concerns. Similarly, sea level rise is an important factor in coastal areas, not only because it poses a risk of inundation to low-lying areas, but it also poses a threat of saltwater intrusion into underground aquifers.

However, according to a recent study published online in Nature Climate Change by a team of Canadian geoscientists, coastal groundwater sources used to supply drinking water are facing a greater threat from human activity than from climate change.

Grant Ferguson from the Department of Civil and Geological Engineering at the University of Saskatchewan University and Tom Gleeson, a geoscientist from the Civil Engineering department at McGrill University analyzed data collected from more than 1400 coastal aquifers. They found that the majority of coastal aquifers are not affected by rising sea levels – the exception being aquifers situated in flat coastal plains that can easily be inundated by rising sea water, however, these are rare in the US.

What they found more of a concern, is water extraction from coastal aquifers for irrigation, domestic use, and for drinking water, as this appears to have a greater impact on these aquifers.

“The bulk of the research in recent years has focused on climate change effects on coastal groundwater but increases in water demand could be more important,” explains Ferguson. “This is particularly true in growing coastal cities and towns where groundwater is often an important water supply.”

Aquifers consist of geological formations, such as gravel or sand, which are saturated with water. Wells withdraw freshwater from these underground aquifers, which are then replenished by surface water sources supplied by rain and melted ice or snow. However, coastal aquifers are bordered by seawater on one side, and this can begin to migrate into the groundwater – including surrounding wells – if excessive amounts of fresh water are drawn off. While a rise in sea levels can also cause salt water to intrude into these coastal aquifers, up until now only issues related to water draw-offs have been recorded in Canada.

“Coastal aquifers are very vulnerable to increased water demand so we have real policy opportunities,” says Gleeson. “We can reduce consumption of groundwater in coastal areas or manage groundwater use wisely.”

Approximately one billion people reside in coastal areas around the world, many of whom depend entirely on groundwater. In Canada alone, roughly 25% of the population relies on groundwater, with some areas almost totally dependent on this resource for irrigation, drinking water, and domestic household use. It is therefore critical that we manage this essential resource wisely to prevent saltwater intrusion, which will only be exacerbated further with rising sea levels.

A study conducted by researchers from the Dartmouth Superfund Research Program on Toxic Metals has revealed that consuming water containing arsenic at levels currently deemed safe by the EPA (10 ppb) causes adverse health effects in pregnant/lactating mice and their offspring. The researchers found that ingesting arsenic in drinking water at low concentrations (10 ppb) disrupted lipid metabolism in pregnant and lactating mothers, resulting in a reduction of nutrients in the blood and breast milk. Consequently, their suckling young showed significant signs of stunted growth and development during the postnatal phase of development before weaning. However, litter size and gestation period were not adversely affected.

“The pups were essentially malnourished; they were small and underdeveloped,” says Joshua Hamilton, coordinator of the study and co-author of the research paper, which was published in the scientific journal PLoS ONE (May 31, 2012). When the pups were fed milk from a mother who had not been exposed to arsenic in her drinking water, their growth rates improved, however, only the male pups fully caught up with developing young mice that had not been exposed to arsenic.

The Chemically Sensitive Young

According to Hamilton, offspring are particularly sensitive to environmental chemical contaminants because “they are developing rapidly. It's not hard for very low doses of a chemical to have big effects on a developing animal.” The study showed that mothers who ingested arsenic with their drinking water had concentrations of triglyceride in their blood and breast milk that were significantly lower than normal, indicating a disruption in the metabolism and storage of fat in their systems.

“Normally, the body is very good at storing fat and glucose for later use”, explains Hamilton. “Up to a certain point, if a mother is malnourished during and after pregnancy, the offspring will not be compromised, because her body uses nutrients it has stored to nourish the baby. Her body will basically 'eat itself' to provide for the baby.” But, because mothers exposed to arsenic have this protective mechanism disrupted, they are unable to provide the necessary nutrients to the pups through the breast milk. The arsenic compromised mothers also exhibited a condition referred to as hepatic steatosis, more commonly known as 'fatty liver', where fat accumulates in the liver abnormally.

The pups from mothers exposed to arsenic showed significantly stunted growth just ten days after birth, and at day 21, when they are typically weaned, they were still far too small to be removed from their mothers.

The EPA recently reduced the Maximum Contaminant Level safety standard for arsenic in public drinking water supplies to 10 ppb, which it considers 'safe' for long-term exposure over a lifetime. However, many unregulated drinking water sources from private wells, many of which are situated in areas that are known to have high naturally occurring geological concentrations of arsenic, have concentrations exceeding 100 ppb.

Should 'Safe' Arsenic Levels be Adjusted?

“This study raises a couple of issues. First, we have to think again about whether 10 ppb arsenic as a U.S. drinking water standard is safe and protective of human health,” says Hamilton, who is a chief academic and scientific officer at the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) and a senior scientist in the MBL Bay Paul Center.

“Second, this study reiterates an emerging idea in toxicology that pregnant women and their offspring are uniquely sensitive to chemicals in their environment. There is a special window of vulnerability for both of them”, explains Hamilton. “Third, if you are on a private water system, particularly in a region with high arsenic, have your water tested so that you know what you are drinking.”

Public water suppliers publish freely available records of levels of regulated chemicals, including arsenic, in drinking water. If you are concerned about levels of arsenic in drinking water from a private well, you can request the Department of Environmental Protection or similar local agency to test a water sample for you to determine concentrations of arsenic or other chemical contaminants. If arsenic levels are high, the best solution for those accessing drinking water from private wells is to purchase bottled water or a water filter that will remove arsenic from the water. A Big Berkey water filter fitted with arsenic water filters in the lower filter chamber will remove arsenic from drinking water to make it safe to drink. The black berkeys that come standard with every system also remove fluoride from the drinking water.

Be Aware of Your Arsenic Intake!

“The message here is: Pay attention to your total arsenic exposure, both in drinking water and also in food.” stressed Hamilton. “Pregnant women, especially, need to be very careful and protective of their health. Environmental chemicals such as arsenic, along with tobacco, alcohol, drugs—all of these chemicals are potential stressors to pregnant women and their offspring.”

“The research conducted by Dr. Hamilton and Dr. Kozul-Horvath is an important component of our Superfund Research Program (SRP) at Dartmouth,” says Bruce Stanton, Dartmouth SRP Director. “These significant results add to the body of knowledge we are developing pertaining to the sources of arsenic, its effects at the cellular level, the ways in which it affects the health of mammals like mice and ultimately, how it causes disease and harmful health outcomes for humans.”

For more information on arsenic in general as well as arsenic in private well water visit the Dartmouth Toxic Metals web site.

Image:

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According to a newly released report, “Short-Term Water Management Decisions: User Needs for Improved Climate, Weather, and Hydrologic Information,” published by the Bureau of Reclamation and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, in order for us to adapt to the impacts of climate change, managers need to have the capacity to make short-term water management decisions based on their understanding of hydroclimate monitoring, short-term prediction, and how this information supports future water management decision making. Consequently, agencies responsible for water management need to have the capacity to address these issues.

The report highlights the need for NGO's, local and tribal agencies and organizations, together with state and Federal agencies, to work side by side to support those responsible for managing water resources in the wake of changing climatic conditions. The report identifies four key areas:  1) Monitoring Product Needs, 2) Forecasting Product Needs, 3) Understanding and Using Information Products in Water Management, and 4) Information Services Enterprise.

“Climate change is adding to the challenges we face in managing a multitude of issues, including water supply, water quality, flood risk, wastewater, aquatic ecosystems, and energy production,” explains Reclamation Commissioner, Michael L. Connor. “Meeting these challenges requires close collaboration among water resource management agencies, operational information service providers, stakeholders and the scientific community.”

“This document describes the short-term needs of the water management community for monitoring and forecast information and tools to support operational decisions,” said U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Director of Civil Works Steven L. Stockton. “Large water resources systems with water supply goals have very different needs from smaller systems that primarily service flood control purposes. Because of those differences, having a unified report such as this one communicates not only the national-level water resource needs but the local interactions between the water resource management agencies and the weather, climate and hydrologic service and information providers.”

The report aims to identify areas where water resource management can be improved by communicating the needs of water resource managers to researchers and information providers so that water management agencies can be provided with the information they need to improve planning and management of water resources.

The report, the second in a series, was compiled by a team from the Climate Change and Water Working Group, made up of technical specialists from the Corps of Engineers and the Bureau of Reclamation with NOAA's National Weather Service. The first report, “Addressing Climate Change in Long-Term Water Resources Planning and Management,” which was released in January 2011, addressed the need for long-term water management and planning in the face of climate change, particularly the need for information and tools to aid planning and decision making with regards to long-term water resource management.

The following Berkey fluoride filter test and media specs was provided by the Berkey manufacturer (New Millennium Concepts) and the PF-2/PF-4 fluoride and arsenic media supplier on 4/8/2013. The intent to is provide additional details on the product for customers who are looking for more detailed data.

PRODUCT INFORMATION:

The Proprietary Fluoride Reduction Media is a new and improved high yield aluminum oxide especially formulated for the removal of Fluoride and arsenic from drinking water. This media has an unusually high surface area of more than 350 sq.m./gram of material which allows more efficient removal of the Fluoride and arsenic ions. This high surface area is enhanced by controlled development of the pore size distribution from 30 Angstroms to 100 Angstroms, providing greater accessibility to the surface active sites through bulk diffusion.

Uniform particle size low silica content and high purity, is characteristic of the new and improved Proprietary Fluoride Reduction Media which insures effective operation in the reduction of Fluoride. The extremely low silica content significantly reduces the tendency of the silica to form silicone tetra fluoride which reacts with both the media and the pipes leading to clogging and corrosion problems.

PRODUCT APPLICATION:

The Proprietary Fluoride Reduction Media is an EPA approved method for removing Fluoride from drinking water. This product can be used in various filtration products and can also be packed in large columns for high volume applications including drinking water treatment plants and waste treatment plants. The Proprietary Fluoride Reduction Media can also be used in various applications where defluorination is necessary.

For maximum removal efficiency, maintain the water being treated between a PH level of 5-7. The media can be regenerated for enhanced performance lifetime with many applications. This makes the Proprietary Fluoride Reduction Media the most effective and economical defluorination product on the market.

TYPICAL PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF PROPRIETARY FLUORIDE REDUCTION MEDIA:

Surface Area, sq. m/g.:                      350
Total Pore volume, cc./g.:                  .55
Aluminum Oxide XRD Phase:            Chi, Gamma, Amorphous
Crush Strength, lbs (kg):                   30 (14)
Abrasion Loss wt%:                           0.1
Bulk Density, lbs/cu. ft (kg/cu. m):     47 (750)

TYPICAL CHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF PROPRIETARY FLUORIDE REDUCTION MEDIA:

                                                           Wt %
AL₂O₃                                                 95.1
SiO₂                                                    0.02
Fe₂O₃                                                 0.02
Na₂O                                                   0.30

GENERAL INFORMATION:

The Proprietary Fluoride Reduction Media has been specially prepared to optimize the media for more efficient removal of the Fluoride ion. Testing of the material is important for each application as influent water PH, quality and purify of the water and various metal ion concentrations are all variables which influence the effectiveness of the media. Note that the material is most efficient between a PH of 5 and 7.

Testing for fluoride removal was based on 20-30 ppm of the ion in the influent aqueous solution at a flow rate of no more than 3 gpm per cubic foot (25kg) of media. Results of < 1 ppm of the fluoride ion in the effluent were typical for the media. Under optimum conditions, effluent concentrations of less than 50 ppb of Fluoride ion were found to be readily achieved. Results may vary significantly with each particular application.

OTHER INFORMATION:

1. Calcium & Sodium Fluoride. The Proprietary Fluoride Reduction Media will remove any types of inorganic fluoride salts. All fluoride salts are soluble in water. So it does not matter what fluoride salts that are in the water, fluoride is present as an anion where the media will absorb fluoride ions in water.
2. Hydro-Fluorosilicic Acid (HFS). We do not have any test data to show how efficient the Proprietary Fluoride Reduction Media will remove hydro-fluosilicic acid. But by adsorption of fluoride anion using alumina, we believe the media will remove hydro-fluosilicic acid better than fluoride. The reason is both compounds are ions with negative charges. The molecular size of hydrofluosilicic acid is much larger than the fluoride ion and hydrofluosilicic acid has two negative charges where as fluoride has only one negative charge. So this negative charge makes hydrofluosislicic acid much easier to adsorb to the media compared to regular fluoride ions.

NMCL obtains its Proprietary Fluoride Reduction Media from a third party USA manufacturer that specializes in media that targets difficult to remove contaminates, such as Fluoride and Arsenic. The above information provided has been extracted from the supplier’s data sheets and other written communications.

According to a recently published report, nearly 200 water fountains and sinks in public schools of Jersey City are contaminated with lead at levels higher than acceptable standards set by the EPA for lead in drinking water. In one water fountain the levels of lead were 800 times higher the acceptable safety levels set by the EPA, while in 37 other cases levels of lead were 100 times greater than the acceptable standard.

According to a spokeswoman for the school district, the affected water fountains and sinks were not currently in use and had been decommissioned for many years. However, a group of concerned parents, 'Jersey City Parents for Progress', led by Ellen Simon, fear that while this may be the case, there is a chance that in a few years time someone may reactivate them, forgetting why they were shut off in the first place.  The other concern that the group has is that sinks used in pre-K classes for hygiene lessons, which includes lessons on toothbrushing, were not tested for lead.

According to the report approximately 1,017 water fountains and sinks were tested between October 2012 and January 2013, with schools 5, 9, 23, 25, 27, 29 annex, 31 and Zero Tolerance, an alternative program at the Bright Street Academy, being the worst effected.

The report shows that School 25 on Kennedy Boulevard exhibits the most problems, with 20 water fountains and sinks and fountains containing lead levels that exceed federal safety standards, while School 41 on Wilkinson Avenue has 18 contaminated sinks and water fountains. The ice machine at Snyder High School contained lead levels 20 times higher than the EPA standard, and at School 16 a sink used by the school nurse contained lead at levels three times higher than the standard.

Testing showed that 174 water fountains and sinks in the Jersey City school district met or exceeded maximum lead levels of 15 parts per billion recommended by the EPA for drinking water. A water fountain at Zero Tolerance had lead levels of 12,800 parts per billion – 853 times more than recommended by the EPA!

A similar round of testing conducted in 2010 by a separate environmental remediation company showed 108 water fountains and sinks to be contaminated. The number has clearly risen and appears to be widespread rather than an isolated case. There also appears to not be any city-wide solution on the table due to the high costs involved.

Lead is particularly harmful to children and infants and children; it can stunt physical and mental development, and can reduce concentration and cause learning problems. Long term exposure to lead in drinking water can result in high blood pressure and kidney problems in adulthood.

If you're concerned about the possibility of your child being exposure to lead in drinking water it would be prudent to send them to school equipped with a water bottle filled from a source that is known to be lead-free. Alternatively provide your child with a portable water filtration solution, such as a refillable Sport Berkey filter drinking bottle, which will remove any contaminants that may be present in the drinking water, including lead to ensure your child remains safe.

Norovirus – the bug that causes stomach flu – is associated with contaminated water and contaminated fresh produce, and is often traced to the surface of the produce. But until recently, it was unclear how fruit and vegetables became contaminated with the virus. A recent study has discovered that that many growers dilute their pesticides with water contaminated with norovirus, suggesting that the application of pesticides not only poses a chemical health risk, but can also pose a microbiological health risk.

Where Norovirus Can Be Found

The Human Norovirus (HNoV) is often found in surface water (lakes, rivers, etc.) and well water – water sources used by many growers on their crops directly and through reconstituted pesticide use. Currently there is no cure for this notorious stomach bug. The only recourse for those infected is to let their body flush out the virus naturally and let the stomach flu run its course. This means enduring vomiting, stomach pain, and diarrhea for a few days, or even up to a week.

The study, published in the Journal of Food Microbiology, tested the theory of contaminated water from various sources being the point of origin of the virus. Farmers often use these different water sources to dilute their pesticides and in the study, it was found that 1) water samples collected from these sources were often contaminated with HNoV, and 2) the pesticides diluted with these contaminated water samples do not counteract the infectivity of the virus.

How to Prevent Infection

If the strong chemicals in pesticides cannot kill human norovirus, how can people protect themselves against infection? As with all diseases, prevention is always better than cure. If a little care and time is spent on ensuring water safety, millions of people can avoid contracting stomach flu.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggest a few simple ways to lessen the chance of contracting and spreading HNoV:

1. Bleaching – This is the use of a water-and-bleach solution, at a concentration of 5.25% per gallon of water, to clean different non-porous surfaces at home.
2. Boiling – To prevent infection, both tap water and water that is collected from natural sources, which is used for consumption should be boiled to kill any viruses present. Alternatively, use a good quality water filter like a Berkey water filter that is capable of removing any viruses that may be lurking in the water.
3. Hand washing – This is the simplest way to prevent infection. Everyone should develop the habit of properly and regularly washing their hands.
4. Wash fruit and vegetables – wash fresh fruit and veggies thoroughly, or peel before consuming.
5. Eating Organic Food – Nutritionists recommend eating more naturally grown food to avoid the health risks associated with pesticide use.

Decontamination of water by boiling or bleaching may involve a little more work for farmers, but the benefits outweigh the health risks in not taking any measures at all. For small scale operators, a simpler option may be to filter the water before using it to dilute pesticides.

HNoV is a highly contagious virus and one of the most common viruses in the world, according to the Center for Infectious Disease Control in the Netherlands. In the United States alone, the virus infects 23 million people and causes 800 deaths every year. In developing countries, approximately 200,000 children under five years contract human norovirus every year. Yet, by taking simple measures to remove or kill any viruses that may be present in water, unnecessary illness can be prevented.

This 22^nd of March marked the 20^th anniversary of World Water Day – an annual international day that celebrates freshwater, with each year highlighting a specific aspect of freshwater. This year, in line with International Year of Water Cooperation, World Water Day focused on cooperation around water.

“Water is central to the well being of people and the planet,” UN Secretary General Ban Ki moon said in his video message for the International Year of Water Cooperation 2013. “We must work together to protect and carefully manage this fragile, finite resource.”

The fulfillment of basic human needs, the environment, socioeconomic development and poverty reduction are all dependent on water, said Ban. “Cooperating around this precious resource is key for security, poverty eradication, social equity and gender equality.”

Today more than 780 million people do not have access to safe drinking water, while 2.5 billion people lack proper sanitation. Rapid population growth is putting increased pressure on water sources for food production, energy supply, and for both domestic and industrial uses. While these demands increase, water sources are threatened by climate change, urban expansion, and pollution.

Good water management can be particularly challenging due to the fact that it is not evenly distributed across the world – either spatially or seasonally; and the water cycle is complex, with impacts on one part of the cycle often affecting other areas – for example melting glaciers impact water availability and future water supply.

Water is a resource that is shared both within and across national boundaries, and to avoid conflict between different users, this needs to be taken into account when managing it. In designating 2013 as the UN International Year of Water Cooperation, the United Nations General Assembly recognizes that cooperation is vital in order to balance the needs and priorities of different user groups to ensure fair and equitable sharing of this essential resource, using it to promote peace rather than conflict. But in order to achieve this we will need to manage it holistically, not only taking scientific, cultural and educational factors into account, but also taking cognizance of social, ethical, religious, political, economic, legal and institutional elements as well.

What is Water Cooperation?

To effectively manage water requires cooperation between different users at both local and international level. To build a simple village water pump requires cooperation between local people to get the job done successfully; diverting water from a river in order to irrigate crops may require the cooperation of regional players; when water is supplied by a river which crosses political borders, international cooperation is required to share the resource equitably and to avoid potential conflict between various users who may have different needs and/or cultures. Similarly, groundwater sources that lie across international boundaries may also require cooperative sharing.

When there is no cooperation between managers and/or different users of water resources, the management of that resource becomes less effective, which can have a negative environmental and economic impact, ultimately adversely effecting human lives. However, when cooperation is achieved and water shared equitably between users, peace is more likely to prevail, followed by sustainable development and prosperity.

UN Water for Life Best Practices Award

At the official ceremony of World Water Day 2013 that took place in The Hague, UN Water has recognized two projects that contribute to the fulfillment of international commitments made on water and water-related issues this year. The UN Water “Water for Life” Best Practices Award was given to a project implemented in the city of Kumamoto in Japan for the conservation of groundwater resources, and to the Republic of Moldova's “Safe Water and Sanitation for All” initiative, which strives to provide safe drinking water and improved sanitation to rural areas of the country.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently reached a landmark agreement with four dairies in the Yakima Valley, WA in efforts to minimize leaching of nitrates into groundwater in the area and to reduce nitrate contamination of local water wells used to supply drinking water.

“This is good news, especially for those working locally to protect Yakima Valley groundwater,'” explains EPA Regional Administrator Dennis McLerran. “By working constructively with us in this local situation, the dairies have committed to protect drinking water and we have committed to collaborate on practices that keep people safe and farms in business.”

According to the terms stipulated in the agreements, the dairies agree to:

1.  Provide residents that live within a radius of 1 mile whose water supply has nitrate levels above 10 ppm – the standard set by the EPA for drinking water – with an alternate supply of safe drinking water.
2.  Implement measures to combat leaching by properly managing animal waste and controlling the use of commercial fertilizers used to enhance grazing for dairy cows.
3.  Conduct regular soil and groundwater sampling at their facilities to monitor nitrogen levels and ensure that nitrogen is being adequately controlled.

4 Dairies Targeted From Study

The agreement has the support from both the Washington State Department of Agriculture and the Washington State Department of Ecology.

“Nutrient management issues are critical for the community, the environment and the dairy industry,” said WSDA Director, Dan Newhouse. “We look forward to working with the EPA, the dairy industry and other affected parties as we strengthen our efforts in crafting long term solutions to the challenges we face.”

The agreements specifically focus on four dairies that were participants in an EPA study released in September 2012: George DeRuyter & Son, LLC; Cow Palace, LLC; Liberty Dairy, LLC; D&A Dairy, LLC; H&S Bosma Dairy (part of Liberty Dairy); George & Margaret, LLC (part of both D&A and George DeRuyter & Sons Dairy).

Yakima's Commitment to Groundwater Health

These efforts support the commitment of the Lower Yakima Valley Groundwater Management Area (GWMA), a recently formed initiative to reduce the threat of nitrogen contamination to groundwater from sewage systems, dairy farms and other forms of agriculture.

“The Department of Ecology applauds the Agreed order/Consent decree between the EPA and the dairies in the Lower Yakima Valley to implement practices to prevent groundwater contamination from their operations, and to ensure that citizens aren't drinking contaminated water,” said Washington State Department of Ecology Director Maia Bellon.

“Elevated nitrate levels are a well-documented problem found in many drinking-water wells in the Lower Valley. We're encouraged that these dairies have agreed to move forward with important best management practices. We hope other farm operations will examine their practices as well.”

Bellon acknowledges that there is still more work that needs to be done to prevent nitrate contamination of groundwater supplies.

“We know there are other protections that can be put in place and other sources of nitrate contamination to discover and address. We need to be sure drinking water wellheads are protected, underground septic systems aren't leaking and reduce impacts from chemical fertilizer applications.”

She also applauded the role played by Yakima County to initiate collaborative strategies through the efforts of the Lower Yakima Valley Groundwater Management Area advisory committee to reduce nitrate contamination and ensure local residents have access to the safe drinking water that they deserve.

Citizen's Urged to Protect and Get Involved

Citizens are also advised to take action to protect their drinking water supply by having drinking water wells regularly tested for nitrate levels, and by implementing measures to limit runoff of animal waste and fertilizers from their own land, homes, and business operations.

According to Bellon, “The Yakima Valley is an important watershed supporting nearly a half million residents, a $2 billion farming and crop processing industry as well as important fisheries. Clean water – both in rivers and streams and in underground aquifers – is key to the health of the region's environment and economy.”

Only by concerted efforts of all concerned – through the implementation of both voluntary initiatives and regulatory enforcement – can success be achieved.

“These agreements are an important step,” said EPA’s McLerran. “We expect to continue our work with state and local partners and the GWMA process to build on this collaborative effort to better understand and control other sources of nitrates in a meaningful manner.”