FAQ-Drinking

Drinking water either comes from surface sources like river, lakes and streams, Lake Okeechobee is one such source, or from groundwater. In Florida most of the drinking water is provided from the aquifers, of all the aquifers the Floridian is the one which supplies most of the drinking water in Florida, chiefly in the northeastern part of the state. The aquifers that are the source of drinking water in the state are- non-artesian Biscayne aquifer, and a non-artesian sand and gravel aquifer.

Can rainfall be considered a source of drinking water?

Yes. In fact rainfall is the main source of drinking water because the water from rainfall flows to our sources of surface drinking water. Rainfall water also infiltrates the groundwater and recharges them.

How does drinking water get polluted?

Surface sources of drinking water are easily prone to pollution because of the direct flow of pollutants. Pollutants either get dissolved in water or adhere themselves to the soil particles, and reach surface water sources through runoff and erosion.

Groundwater is also at risk from pollution. Groundwater pollution mainly happens from the pollutants that are soluble in water and percolate to the groundwater source with the recharge.

Surface water contamination may be easier to remediate than groundwater because of accessibility. Groundwater contamination may take many years, much more effort and money to treat..

What are some of the causes of ground and surface water pollution?

Source of groundwater contamination can be any or more of the following:

Pesticides, petroleum or any other synthetic chemicals
Heavy metals like mercury, arsenic, cadmium, chromium and lead
Nitrogen in the form of nitrate, which the highly soluble form of nitrogen
Pathogens

Surface water can be contaminated easily from pollutants that are soluble as well as from pollutants that are not soluble in or partially soluble in water. Sources of surface water contamination are:

Household chemicals like detergents and other cleaning solutions
Fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides
Animal waste from livestock facilities
Petroleum and many synthetic chemicals
Pathogens from organic wastes
Sediments in runoff water

How can we protect our drinking water resources?

The most effective measure we can take to protect both surface and ground water sources of drinking water is prevention at source. We have to enable processes that may help break down the existing contaminants, which will expedite the remediation process. Where the clean-up is hard to accomplish through such natural processes, aeration or mixing helps to generate an environment conducive to the natural cleaning-up processes. We will have to promote responsible and positive approach to tackle the problem, which entails the adoption of recycling programs, careful disposal of hazardous and non-hazardous wastes, less use of synthetic chemicals, fertilizers and pesticides, and a change in attitude.

How does contamination of drinking water affects the health of humans, animals, and plants?

Contaminants in drinking water affects one and all. It can travel up the food chain by affecting the lower organisms, consequently affecting the food supply available for the animals of humans. Aquatic animals can accumulate the contaminants in their bodies and cause serious health hazards to the animals or humans who consume them. Wetlands support a wide variety of flora and fauna, pollutants can affect a wetland by interfering with their natural capacity of filtering our pollutants, this then affects the life of these wetlands.

Drinking Water Standards

What is Safe Drinking Water Act?

Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) was passed in 1974, but in the following years has been amended many time to expand its capacity. The act was passed to prohibit organic chemicals from entering the drinking water sources, it establishes the standard of safe drinking water, monitors public water systems, and prevents pollutions from entering the groundwater from injection wells.

Who enforces SDWA in Florida?

Historically, EPA was the regulating authority. But now the authority lies with FDEP to enforce SDWA. The five water management districts in the state provide enforcement of the act on a regional level. After the 1986 amendment EPA has regained its power to intervene when SDWA is violated and no action is taken after 30 days of notice from the EPA.

What are drinking water standards?

Drinking water standards are the standards given by EPA for the allowable levels of contaminants in our drinking water, which may not cause any health hazard. EPA has set two categories for regulating drinking water standards, National Primary Drinking Water Regulation (NPDWR) and National Secondary Drinking Water Regulation (NSDWR). NPDWR apply to public water system and regulate contaminants that may be harmful to human health when ingested. NSDWR is set to regulate contaminant that may have harmful cosmetic affects like discoloration of teeth, skin and nails. It also regulates the standards of aesthetic qualities like, taste, color, and odor. More information on these regulation can be found on EPA's Groundwater and Drinking Water page.

Drinking Water Testing and Treatment

Can we test drinking water at home?

Yes, there are many home-testing kits available now a days, which test for levels of harmful bacteria, lead, pesticides (particularly Atrazine), Nitrates, Chlorine, pH, hardness. Professional help may be required in cases where there is a need to establish the relationship between health problems and drinking water quality. Many agencies, including governmental and private, can be reached for help. New home-buyers should consider the drinking water tested, either by themselves or by professional team, if the water source at the property is a private well.

What are some of the water problems or concerns and the parameters to be tested to establish the cause?

There are many ways that we can suspect a problem with drinking water. Appearance, smell, taste, use symptoms like stains on clothes or teeth, frequent illness usually of gastrointestinal nature, or corrosion. If your house is near a fuel tank facility, landfill, agricultural land or a factory, you may suspect or observe leakage of the pollutants to the water supply. If there is a suspicion the water should immediately be tested for Hydrocarbons, VOC, TDS, heavy metals, nitrate, bacteria and many other parameters. Even one of the above reasons is a cause enough to get your drinking water tested. The nature of problem and the recommended tests to confirm it are listed below:

Problem	Recommended Testing Parameter/s
Appearance
Frothy, foamy	Detergents
Brown, reddish or yellow	Iron
Smell/Taste
Rotten eggs	Hydrogen Sulfide
Metallic	pH, iron, zinc, copper, lead
Salty	Total dissolved solids, chloride, sodium, sulfate
Septic, musty or earthy	Bacteria
Soapy	Detergent, surfactants
Stains or corrosion of laundry or fixtures
Red, brown	Iron
Black	Manganese
Green/blue	Copper
Soap scum	Hardness
Corrosion	Corrosivity, pH, lead, zinc, manganese, iron, sulfates, chlorides
Physical Symptoms
Discoloration of teeth	Fluoride
Illness	Bacteria- E Coli, Giardia, sulfates
Illness in small animals or infants	Nitrates

What is a water treatment plant?

A water treatment plant is a facility that treats surface and ground water to make it potable for human consumption or provide primary treatment to produce water for industrial use.

What are some of the steps undertaken in the treatment process?

Aeration- Water is sprayed through the nozzles to break the water into small drops, which improves the oxygen balance and release trapped gases that cause bad taste and odor.
Coagulation- The coagulants neutralize the water particles and combine with each other.
Flocculation- After coagulation flocculation helps the combined particles to attach to each other more to grow in size so that they can settle.
Sedimentation- In this step the water is passed into sedimentation basin where the particles are allowed to settle. This process successfully removes 85% of the suspended solids in the water.
Filtration- Any remaining particle is removed through the process of filtration. Filtration systems are large concrete walled boxed, the bottom of these boxes are filter beds made up of anthracite sand. Particles are trapped in this layer of sand and water flows from a filtration system to a collecting unit.
Disinfection- Chlorine is added to the water after the above steps, to kill the pathogens like bacteria or viruses. Before water leaves the treatment plants a small amount of ammonia is added to form chloramines, which are more stable form of disinfectant and will last longer in the distribution system.
Ozonation- Ozonation is a process in which ozone is used for disinfection and control of taste and odor.
Fluoridation- Fluoride may or may not be added in the treatment plant. Some plants are required by law to add Fluoride to promote dental health. Other may not do so if the required level of Fluoride is already present in water.

Is treated water safe for consumption?

Yes, water treatment plants have to follow the federal and state regulations, as described in the Safe Drinking Water act, and can only release water for public consumption after the levels of pollutants have been eliminated or reduced to a safe level.

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Last Revised on: 11/20/2007