Annual
Drinking Water Quality Report
Chilhowie
INTRODUCTION
This
Annual Drinking Water Quality Report for calendar year 2007 is designed to
inform you about your drinking water quality.
Our goal is to provide you with a safe and dependable supply of drinking
water, and we want you to understand the efforts we make to protect your water
supply. The quality of your drinking
water must meet state and federal requirements administered by the Virginia
Department of Health (VDH).
If you have questions or want
additional information about any aspect of your drinking water or want to know
how to participate in decisions that may affect the quality of your drinking
water, or this report, please contact:
Mr. Bill Boswell, Town Manager
Town of
276-646-3232
The times and location of regularly
scheduled board meetings are as follows:
The second Thursday of each month @
POTENTIAL SOURCES OF CONTAMINATION
The sources of drinking water (both
tap water and bottled water) include rivers, lakes, streams, ponds, reservoirs,
springs, and wells. As water travels over
the surface of the land or through the ground, it dissolves naturally-occurring
minerals and, in some cases, radioactive material, and can
pick up substances resulting from the
presence of animals or from human activity.
Contaminants that may be present in source water include:
· Microbial
contaminants, such as viruses and bacteria, which may come from sewage
treatment plants, septic systems, agricultural livestock operations, and
wildlife.
· Inorganic contaminants, such as salts and metals, which can be naturally-occurring
or result from urban storm water runoff, industrial or domestic wastewater
discharges, oil and gas production, mining , or farming.
· Pesticides
and herbicides, which may come from a variety of sources such as
agriculture, urban storm water runoff, and residential uses.
· Organic
chemical contaminants, including synthetic and volatile organic chemicals,
which are byproducts of industrial processes and petroleum production, and can,
also, come from gas stations, urban storm water runoff, and septic
systems.
· Radioactive contaminants, which can be naturally-occurring or
be the result of oil and gas production and mining activities. In order to ensure that tap water is safe to
drink, EPA prescribes regulations which limit the amount of certain
contaminants in water provided by public water systems. Food and Drug Administration regulations
establish limits for contaminants in bottled water which must provide the same
protection for public health.
Drinking water, including bottled
water, may reasonably be expected to contain at least small amounts of some contaminants. The presence of contaminants does not
necessarily indicate that water poses a health risk. More information can be obtained by calling
the Environmental Protection Agency's Safe Drinking Water Hotline
(800-426-4791).
Some people may be more vulnerable to
contaminants in drinking water than the general population. Immuno-compromised
persons such as persons with cancer undergoing chemotherapy, persons who have
undergone organ transplants, people with HIV/AIDS or other immune system
disorders, some elderly, and infants can be particularly at risk from
infections. These people should seek advice about drinking water from their
health care providers. EPA/CDC guidelines on appropriate means to lessen the
risk of infection by cryptosporidium and other microbiological contaminants are
available from the Safe Drinking Water Hotline (800-426-4791).
SOURCE WATER ASSESSMENT
The source of your drinking water is
groundwater under the direct influence of surface water from three springs
treated at the Chilhowie/Washington
County Service Authority
Membrane Filtration Plant. Treatment
includes membrane filtration, chlorine disinfection and fluoridation.
The
Virginia Department of Health conducted a source water assessment of our system
during 2002. The three sources were
determined to be of highly susceptible to contamination using the criteria
developed by the state in its approved Source Water Assessment Program. The assessment report consists of Maps
showing the source water assessment area, an inventory of known land use
activities of concern, and documentation of any known contamination within the
last 5 years. The report is available by
contacting Jay Keen at the phone number or address given elsewhere in this
drinking water quality report.
Key Terms & Definitions
Contaminants in your drinking water
are routinely monitored according to Federal and State regulations. The table below shows the results of our
monitoring for the period of January 1st to
· Maximum Contaminant Level, or MCL - the highest level of a contaminant
that is allowed in drinking water. MCLs
are set as close to the MCLGs as feasible using the best available treatment
technology.
· Maximum Contaminant Level Goal, or
MCLG - the level of a contaminant in drinking water below
which there is no known or expected risk to health. MCLGs allow for a margin of safety.
· Non-detects (ND) - lab analysis indicates that the contaminant is not present
· Parts per million (ppm) or Milligrams
per liter (mg/l) - one part per million corresponds to one minute in
two years or a single penny in $10,000.
· Parts per billion (ppb) or Micrograms
per liter - one part per billion corresponds to one minute in
2,000 years, or a single penny in $10,000,000.
· Parts per trillion (ppt) or Nanograms
per liter (nanograms/l) - one part per trillion corresponds to one minute in 2,000,000 years,
or a single penny in $10,000,000,000.
· Picocuries per liter (pCi/L) - picocuries
per liter is a measure of the radioactivity in water.
· Action Level - the concentration of a contaminant
which, if exceeded, triggers treatment or other requirements which a water
system must follow.
· Treatment Technique (TT) - a required process intended to
reduce the level of a contaminant in drinking water.
· Nephelometric Turbidity Unit (NTU) -
nephelometric turbidity unit is a measure of the clarity, or cloudiness,
of water. Turbidity in excess of 5 NTU is just noticeable to the average
person. Turbidity is monitored because
it is a good indicator of the effectiveness of our filtration system.
·
Maximum Residual Disinfectant Level Goal or MRDLG – the level
of drinking water disinfectant below which there is no known or expected risk
to health. MRDLGs do not reflect the benefits of the use of disinfectants to
control microbial contaminants.
·
Maximum Residual Disinfectant Level or MRDL – the
highest level of a disinfectant allowed in drinking water. There is convincing
evidence that addition of a disinfectant is necessary for control of microbial
contaminants.