An Analysis of City Water and Community Water Supplies
In this series of Blogs we will be discussing water quality
for city and community water supplies in southeast Michigan, particularly in
Livingston, Washtenaw, Oakland and Genesee counties.
From city water to community water supplies all have their own water quality issues, concerns and methods to treat particular water problems. These city and community water supplies are heavily regulated by the state and federal government for the disinfectants used, how much is used, the processes used, along with an ever evolving list of drinking water standards that have to be met.
From city water to community water supplies all have their own water quality issues, concerns and methods to treat particular water problems. These city and community water supplies are heavily regulated by the state and federal government for the disinfectants used, how much is used, the processes used, along with an ever evolving list of drinking water standards that have to be met.
First of all let’s clarify exactly what is meant by the
terms City Water and Community Water Supply.
Municipal /City water supplies typically get their water from a surface
supply such as a Lake, Reservoir or River.
Community water supplies are generally from a private water source which
usually is a ground water well. Depending
on the number of people a community well has to service there may be one to
several wells in use to supply enough water to service that community and usually
there is a “back up” well to supply water in case of well issues or in an
emergency.
With this first Water and Our Health blog we will be discussing
the city of South Lyon, Michigan and its community well water supply. The South Lyon, Michigan community well water system
services approximately 11,000 residents and has three groundwater wells that
supply the community. The first concern when delivering customers water from
either a city water supply or community water supply is for it to be protected,
free of bacteria and assure every customer has “Potable Water”. To assure the water delivered to every home
is free of bacteria treatment plants inject chlorine into the water as it leaves the
plant. The chlorine reacts with organics
and bacteria in the water to sanitize the water system helping to prevent
bacterial growth and protect against any outside intrusion such as a broken water
main.
There is one issue with chlorine and its many forms that
treatment plants use. Chlorine is very unstable and tends to break down fairly
rapidly in the water treatment system depending on the size of the water system
and how much reaction chlorine has with possible contaminants in the water
supply. The more contaminants the faster
chlorine residuals are used and the weaker the protection becomes as it reaches
further out into the community. To
counteract this problem the chlorine levels are constantly monitored to assure
there is enough residual at the end user.
Because Community Water supplies are drawn from groundwater
sources the water tends to be very high in calcium and magnesium (hardness). Many
wells also have high iron levels (which causes staining and rust buildup). Hard water scale and iron can cause many
problems in the household, ruining appliances, water heaters, staining plumbing
fixtures and clothes. As chlorine, from
the water system, enters the home it has served its purpose and needs to be
removed at the point of entry. The
byproducts created as chlorine reacts with organics and bacteria in the water (trihalomethanes)
are known carcinogens so the household water should have the chlorine removed
at the point of entry for water along with a conditioning system to remove
hardness (scale) and iron (rust) to assure your home is operating as efficiently
as possible. Advanced Water Treatment
Inc. has several water treatment options to help you achieve the quality of
water your family requires.
Below are several links regarding the topics discussed in
this article and water treatment options.
Good Days and Good Water to you!
Ray McConnell
Certified Water Treatment Specialist
Thank you for sharing this blog. The human body consist of 60% of water. Water is essential for good health and our body functions such as temperature regulation, cellular function and waste removal. Water purifier service chennai helps to take a pure water.
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