Puricare Industrial Enterprises: Drinking Water

Showing posts with label Drinking Water. Show all posts

Tuesday, February 2, 2021

ROAD SALT THREATENS TO SALINIZE NORTH AMERICAN FRESHWATER - Failure to decrease salt use could result in lakes becoming too salty to support natural life by the year 2050. These warnings strike eerily in unison with recent calls for fresh water preservation due to the sheer lack of it. Experts urge that people reflect on the direct impact humans have on freshwater ecosystems, not just through runoff, but agriculture, the disposal of waste, and land development. Salinization is one of the many threats facing freshwater. It is necessary that governments not only recognize this threat but take steps to protecting and promoting the recovery of freshwater ecosystems. By using alternatives to road salt, freshwater can be preserved for future generations. - As springtime thaws the country, many are sighing with relief as frost rescinds and flowers begin to bloom. However, as the snow and ice melt away, few realize the lasting impact the winter season will have on the future of neighboring fresh bodies of water. Salt, a universal melting solution for roads and walkways around the country, is slowly making freshwater in North America saltier. This change in composition could lead to serious consequences, which could go as far as to threaten sources of human drinking water. Since the 1940s, road salt, not too different from regular table salt, has been sprinkled on roads as a way to melt ice and protect drivers.

............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Road Salt Threatens to Salinize North American Freshwater

Failure to decrease salt use could result in lakes becoming too salty to support natural life by the year 2050. These warnings strike eerily in unison with recent calls for fresh water preservation due to the sheer lack of it. Experts urge that people reflect on the direct impact humans have on freshwater ecosystems, not just through runoff, but agriculture, the disposal of waste, and land development.

Salinization is one of the many threats facing freshwater. It is necessary that governments not only recognize this threat but take steps to protecting and promoting the recovery of freshwater ecosystems. By using alternatives to road salt, freshwater can be preserved for future generations.

By Madeline Gressman, Staff Writer for Save the Water™

As springtime thaws the country, many are sighing with relief as frost rescinds and flowers begin to bloom.

However, as the snow and ice melt away, few realize the lasting impact the winter season will have on the future of neighboring fresh bodies of water.

Salt, a universal melting solution for roads and walkways around the country, is slowly making freshwater in North America saltier.

This change in composition could lead to serious consequences, which could go as far as to threaten sources of human drinking water.

Since the 1940s, road salt, not too different from regular table salt, has been sprinkled on roads as a way to melt ice and protect drivers.

In fact, each year it is estimated that a stunning 23 million metric tons of salt are used throughout North America for this purpose alone.

This safety precaution may be well intended, but the mass salting of our roadways is consequently contaminating fresh water and posing threats to local ecosystems.

The Great Lakes

The Twin Cities in Minnesota, known for its chill and 10,000 lakes, served as a hotspot for scientists in a recent mass study of several hundred lakes.

The two cities straddle the Mississippi River, which since 1985 has shown an 85 percent increase in salt concentration.

This increase could only be caused by road salt runoff, experts say, because the salt essentially has nowhere else to go.

This point was driven home further when results showed that lakes within 500 meters of roads had higher salt levels than those further from roadways.

While the Mississippi River has the advantage of a flowing stream, which replenishes itself naturally, stagnant lakes and ponds are not so lucky.

Their water replenishes less frequently, making them the most vulnerable to pollution.

Experts go so far as to warn that failure to decrease salt use could result in lakes becoming too salty to support natural life by the year 2050.

These warnings strike eerily in unison with recent calls for fresh water preservation due to the sheer lack of it.

Separate researchers have found that most lakes are shallower than initially estimated in past limited studies, which in short means “less fresh water” than anyone has ever expected.

With 18 percent of the world’s fresh water found in the five Great Lakes, the salinization that was seen in and around these communities could have dire consequences.

Just three years ago in 2014, Lake Erie faced overwhelming algae and nutrient pollution that left 400,000 citizens in both the United States and Canadian sides of the lake without drinkable water.

Similar issues have been unfolding throughout the country, most famously in Flint, Michigan, where salty water played a part in degrading the city’s water pipe system.

Experts urge that people reflect on the direct impact humans have on freshwater ecosystems, not just through runoff, but agriculture, the disposal of waste, and land development.

Salinization is one of the many threats facing freshwater and even these startling numbers, according to researchers, are “likely an underestimation” due to a lack of long-term data from Canadian regions that also use heavy amounts of road salt.

Though local governments have cut back on salt usage, most did so because of rising costs, not because of the threat its use poses on waterways and the ecosystem.

It is necessary that governments not only recognize this threat but take steps to protecting and promoting the recovery of freshwater ecosystems.

The population is responsible as well to use alternative, eco-friendly ice melting options existing in most households, such as coffee grounds, sand, or beet juice.

By using alternatives to road salt, freshwater can be preserved for future generations.

The mission of Save The Water™ is to conduct water research to identify and remove harmful contaminants in water, and to raise public awareness about water contamination and its health impacts.

Although Save The Water™ operates mainly in North America and follows scientific procedures established by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, the impact of our analytical research and water treatment technology is universally applicable.

http://savethewater.org/road-salt-threatens-salinize-north-american-freshwater/

You might also like:

How Does Salt Melt Ice

CLICK HERE . . . to view . . .

https://puricare.blogspot.com/2019/12/how-salt-melts-ice-0-degrees-is-point.html

Rock Salt

CLICK HERE . . . to view . . .

https://puricare.blogspot.com/2019/06/rock-salt-rock-salt-is-also-known-by.html

Salt Water And Desalination

CLICK HERE . . . to view . . .

https://puricare.blogspot.com/2019/01/salt-water-and-desalination-by-product.html

Over-Pumping of
Underground Aquifers

CLICK HERE . . . to view . . .

https://puricare.blogspot.com/2021/01/over-pumping-of-underground-aquifers.html

Pollution Of Lakes

CLICK HERE . . . to view . . .

https://puricare.blogspot.com/2018/08/pollution-of-lakes-many-agricultural.html

Sources of groundwater pollution

CLICK HERE . . . to view . . .

https://puricare.blogspot.com/2016/07/groundwater-pollution-wastes-dumped-or.html

Scripture And Climate Change

CLICK HERE . . . to view . . .

https://puricarechronicles.blogspot.com/2020/06/scripture-and-climate-change-scriptures.html

Saturday, January 23, 2021

The Water Cycle - What is the Water Cycle - The water does not just magically appear in either place; it is a long process. One of the most interesting things about water is that there is not really a beginning or an end to that process - there is what is referred to as ‘the water cycle’ and it points to the fact that the water we have today is the same water that we have been using since the dawn of ages, it just keeps getting recycled. Let’s inject ourselves in to a part of the cycle that seems like a good starting point – rain. Rain water falls from the clouds, landing on our backyards, roof tops, roads, lakes, and rivers (and everything else). Here water can settle into the landscape (infiltration) or it can wash away (run-off). The water that is absorbed by the landscape works its way down through layers of leaves, dirt and rock until it runs into the water table or ground water (also called an aquifer). The water that washes away follows gravity down hills, into water drains picking up speed and debris as it goes; this water ends up washing into our streams and creeks causing them to fill up and flow faster. Our creeks start as small trickles that bubble up from the water table at a point called a ‘spring’. These trickles of water come together as they head downhill to the ocean with each merger they increase the amount of water that runs in them and they become creeks, streams, and rivers. This inner connection of hundreds or thousands of creeks, streams and rivers is called a watershed.

Water Cycle shows that all of our water is connected.

The Water Cycle

What is the Water Cycle

American Rivers

Where does our water come from?

And how did it get there?

For some folks the answer is the grocery store (and Fiji) but for most of us the answer is that it flows out of the tap when we turn it on.

Though the reality is that the water does not just magically appear in either place; it is a long process.

One of the most interesting things about water is that there is not really a beginning or an end to that process - there is what is referred to as ‘the water cycle’ and it points to the fact that the water we have today is the same water that we have been using since the dawn of ages, it just keeps getting recycled.

How the Water Cycle Works

Let’s inject ourselves in to a part of the cycle that seems like a good starting point – rain.

Rain water falls from the clouds, landing on our backyards, roof tops, roads, lakes, and rivers (and everything else).

Here water has two choices: it can settle into the landscape (infiltration) or it can wash away (run-off).

The water that is absorbed by the landscape works its way down through layers of leaves, dirt and rock until it runs into the water table or ground water (also called an aquifer).

The water that washes away follows gravity down hills, into water drains picking up speed and debris (leaves, trash, dirt, pet waste) as it goes; this water ends up washing into our streams and creeks causing them to fill up and flow faster.

But, where did that creek come from?

Our creeks start as small trickles that bubble up from the water table at a point called a ‘spring’.

These trickles of water come together as they head downhill to the ocean with each merger they increase the amount of water that runs in them and they become creeks, streams, and rivers.

This inner connection of hundreds or thousands of creeks, streams and rivers is called a watershed.

The water that flows in the Mississippi River (the largest river watershed in the country) past New Orleans could have started near Pittsburg, PA in the Ohio River or Bismarck, ND in the Missouri River or Oklahoma City, OK in the South Canadian River.

Everyone that lives in our watersheds needs some of that water to be clean enough to drink so they can live.

Some people, businesses, farmers, and towns use wells (holes drilled deep into the ground) to pull water from the underground water table.

This water is cleaned up as is filters its way down through the dirt, rock and clay of the earth’s crust.

It is critical for that water supply that there are areas that are clean and open enough for water to be able to be absorbed into the ground and that the ground that the water is moving through is clean.

Other communities use water pulled directly from our rivers for their drinking water.

In this case it is critical that the water that is washed into those creeks, streams, and rivers or that bubbles up from springs is as clean as possible before being pulled from the river.

Once a community system pulls that water from a river (and in some cases a well), the water is treated to federal and state required purity levels before being pumped and piped to our houses as clean drinking water.

It is only at this point that the water is able to come out of your tap when you turn the faucet on.

About American Rivers

The mission of American Rivers is to protect wild rivers, restore damaged rivers and conserve clean water for people and nature.

We combine national advocacy with field work in key river basins to deliver the greatest impact. We are practical problem-solvers with positions informed by science. We build partnerships and work closely with local river advocates, business and agriculture interests, recreation groups and others to forge win-win solutions. And with our expertise, outreach, and additional grants, we deliver the highest return on investment.

https://www.americanrivers.org/rivers/discover-your-river/what-is-the-water-cycle/

You might also like:

The Atmosphere and Weather are Essential to the Water Cycle

CLICK HERE . . . to view . . .

https://puricare.blogspot.com/2020/12/the-water-cycle-atmosphere-and-weather.html

Water On The Earth

CLICK HERE . . . to view . . .

https://puricare.blogspot.com/2018/05/water-on-earth-how-much-water-is-there.html

Precipitation is needed to replenish water to the earth

CLICK HERE . . . to view . . .

https://puricare.blogspot.com/2021/01/precipitation-precipitation-is-needed.html

Shocking Facts about Fresh Water

CLICK HERE . . . to view . . .

https://puricare.blogspot.com/2020/08/shocking-facts-about-fresh-water-while.html

Let's Talk About Water

CLICK HERE . . . to view . . .

https://puricarechronicles.blogspot.com/2019/12/lets-talk-about-water-in-all.html

Rain Clouds

CLICK HERE . . . to view . . .

https://puricarechronicles.blogspot.com/2020/11/rain-clouds-science-in-bible-clouds-are.html

What is

groundwater

CLICK HERE . . . to view . . .

https://puricare.blogspot.com/2016/06/groundwater-there-is-immense-amount-of.html

The Hydrological Cycle or Water Cycle

CLICK HERE . . . to view . . .

https://puricare.blogspot.com/2016/05/the-hydrological-cycle-or-water-cycle.html

Wednesday, January 20, 2021

COLIFORM “PRESENT” - How to Fix it - Coliform bacteria do not occur naturally in most aquifers. Fractured or creviced bedrock aquifers that are close to the surface are the exception. Be aware that there are three different groups of coliform bacteria; total coliform, fecal coliform and Escherichia coli (E. coli) each has a different level of risk. Keep in mind that coliform bacteria do not always show up in every sample. They can be sporadic and sometimes seasonal when they occur in a water supply. If your water is contaminated with coliform but not fecal coliform or E. coli, don't panic. You have a nuisance bacteria problem and the source may be infiltration from the surface from rain or snow melt. Typical causes are improperly sealed well cap, well repairs performed without disinfecting the well, failed grouting or surface drainage to the well. If your well had coliform bacteria present you should shock chlorinate the well, repack the soil around the well pipe to flow away from the well and replace the well cap. Then after at least two weeks and the next big rainstorm retest the well for coliform. If coliform bacteria is still present then a long-term treatment should be implemented: using UV light, ozonation, or chlorine for continuous disinfection. Coliform bacteria are commonly found in soil, on vegetation, and in surface water. Some coliform bacteria strains can survive in soil and water for long periods of time. Coliform bacteria will not likely cause illness.

Coliform “PRESENT”

How to Fix it

Coliform bacteria do not occur naturally in most aquifers. Fractured or creviced bedrock aquifers that are close to the surface are the exception. Be aware that there are three different groups of coliform bacteria; total coliform, fecal coliform and Escherichia coli (E. coli) each has a different level of risk. Keep in mind that coliform bacteria do not always show up in every sample. They can be sporadic and sometimes seasonal when they occur in a water supply.

Elizabeth Ward

This spring in the well water clinic we run each year we found 25 wells out of 114 that had coliform "PRESENT."

On a state level, the occurrence of coliform is higher.

Of the approximately 7,000 households that participated in the Virginia Household Water Quality Program clinics from 2007 to 2015 they found that 41% of the wells had coliform bacteria, and 9% had E. coli bacteria.

Though the 7,000 households may not be representative of all private drinking water wells in Virginia, it is the largest database on private drinking water wells available.

It is safe to say that coliform contamination is widespread.

If your water is contaminated with coliform but not fecal coliform or E. coli, don't panic.

You have a nuisance bacteria problem and the source may be infiltration from the surface from rain or snow melt.

Typical causes are improperly sealed well cap, well repairs performed without disinfecting the well, failed grouting or surface drainage to the well.

If your well had coliform bacteria present you should shock chlorinate the well, repack the soil around the well pipe to flow away from the well and replace the well cap.

Then after at least two weeks and the next big rainstorm retest the well for coliform.

If coliform bacteria is still present then a long-term treatment should be implemented: using UV light, ozonation, or chlorine for continuous disinfection.

These systems can cost up to $2,000 installed.

If your well test PRESENT for coliform standard protocol is:

1. Carefully check the well and water system for points of contamination. Make sure you have a sound and secured sanitary well cap and that the soil around the well is packed to drain water away from the well.

2. Then treat the well and plumbing system with chlorine for 12-24 hours to disinfect system (the 12-24 hours is essential). Then flush the chlorine from the system- not to your septic system. Make sure that this is done correctly.

3. Retest the water after the chlorine has left the system in about 10 days to two weeks. If coliform bacteria is “ABSENT” you’re done. If not, then it is time to install a long term disinfection system. (UV light or continuous chlorination)

In an existing well system that formerly was bacteria free look for these defects:

· A missing or defective well cap and check seals around wires, pipes, and where the cap meets the casing may be cracked, letting in contaminants.

· Contaminant seepage through the well casing - cracks or holes in the well casing allow water that has not been filtered through the soil to enter the well. This seepage is common in the wells made of concrete, clay tile, or brick. This can also happen to a steel pipe well that was hit by a piece of equipment such as a car, snow blower, lawn tractor or mower or that has rusted.

· Contaminant seeping along the outside of the well casing - many older wells were not sealed with grout when they were constructed or the grouting has failed. Check the grouting carefully especially if water seems different after severe rains.

· Well flooding - a common problem for wellheads located below the ground in frost pits that frequently flood during wet weather.

Coliform bacteria are commonly found in soil, on vegetation, and in surface water.

Some coliform bacteria strains can survive in soil and water for long periods of time. Coliform bacteria will not likely cause illness.

Coliform bacteria do not occur naturally in most aquifers. Fractured or creviced bedrock aquifers that are close to the surface are the exception.

Be aware that there are three different groups of coliform bacteria; total coliform, fecal coliform and Escherichia coli (E. coli) each has a different level of risk.

If your water is contaminated with coliform but not fecal coliform or E. coli, then you have a nuisance bacteria problem.

Bacteria washed into the ground by rainfall or snowmelt are usually filtered out as water seeps through the soil, so properly constructed water wells do not typically harbor Coliform bacteria.

However, coliform bacteria can persist within slime formed by naturally occurring ground water microorganisms.

The slime (or biofilm) clings to the well screen, casing, drop pipe, and pump and may even invade filter systems.

Disturbances during pumping or well maintenance can cause the slime to dislodge, releasing the coliform bacteria.

Keep in mind that coliform bacteria do not always show up in every sample. They can be sporadic and sometimes seasonal when they occur in a water supply.

You should not continue drinking water contaminated with coliform, either boil the water drink bottled water until you disinfect your well.

Bring the water to a rolling boil for one to five minutes (the higher the elevation the more time is necessary) to kill the bacteria.

You may also want to consider using bottled water as a temporary drinking and cooking water source.

You may have received a total coliform count. This gives you a general indication of the sanitary condition of a water supply and extent of the problem.

Bacteria can be introduced into a new well during construction and can remain if the water system is not thoroughly disinfected and flushed.

Well construction defects such as insufficient well casing depth, improper sealing of the space between the well casing and the borehole, corroded or cracked well casings, and poor well seals or caps can allow surface water or insects to carry coliform bacteria into the well.

These problems are common and the most likely source of the coliform bacteria contamination.

Unplugged abandoned wells can also carry coliform bacteria into deeper aquifers.

Since bacterial contamination cannot be detected by taste, smell, or sight, all drinking water wells should be tested at least annually for Coliform bacteria.

Elizabeth Ward was awarded an MBA from the University of Pittsburgh and an MS ChE from NYU Tandon School of Engineering, worked as a chemical engineer for both the US EPA in DC, and at DuPont before working in finance and then becoming consultant with Washington Advisors and is the author of "The Lenders Guide to Developing an Environmental Risk Management Program." Elizabeth retired from Washington Advisors and began her volunteer career and served 10 years as the Treasurer of the Prince William Soil and Water Conservation District.

https://greenrisks.blogspot.com/2018/05/coliform-present-steps-to-take.html

You might also like:

Owning A Home With A Well